When you walked down the aisle, you probably thought you would be with your spouse forever. Unfortunately, life has a way of interfering with anyone’s best intentions. If you are contemplating divorce but are not yet ready to leave your spouse, a postnuptial agreement may save your marriage.
Virtually everyone knows something about prenuptial agreements. These marital contracts, executed before the marriage begins, outline rights and responsibilities of both spouses. They also address what happens to certain assets if divorce should occur. Postnuptial agreements are similar, but spouses execute them after the marriage takes place.
Improve communication
Sometimes, marital complications stem from a breakdown in communication. While a postnuptial agreement is not right for every married couple, drafting one may help you talk to your spouse about assets, debts, household duties and other important matters. Because talking to a spouse is not always easy, using the postnuptial agreement to open lines of communication may be a better alternative to adversarial divorce.
Manage financial stress
Financial stress can be enough to derail even otherwise successful marriages. If you and your partner have different spending habits, a postnuptial agreement may provide an effective way to reach some agreement on important matters. Also, if either you or your spouse has a child from a previous marriage, your postnuptial agreement may offer an avenue for providing for everyone in the family without causing resentment. Either way, if you and your partner frequently argue about financial matters, addressing them in a postnuptial agreement may be the solution.
No one knows more about your marriage than you and your spouse. As such, the two of you are in the best position to decide when to divorce. If you are not yet ready to call it quits, though, thinking about alternatives to divorce is a good idea. A postnuptial agreement may be one of them.