Post And Pre-Nuptial Agreement UK Solicitors in Manchester, London & Birmingham
If you are considering a post or pre-nuptial agreement to protect your interests in a relationship, contact our highly family law team to seek professional advice: 0330 107 0107.
Some people feel pre and post nuptial agreements are unromantic but if you are looking to protect your interests whilst in a relationship, then these options should be seriously considered:
Pre-nuptial agreement
A prenuptial agreement, commonly referred to as a prenup, is a legal contract entered into by a couple before they get married or enter into a civil partnership. It outlines the financial and property arrangements in the event of a divorce, separation, or the dissolution of the civil partnership.
A prenuptial agreement allows couples to determine how their assets, debts, and other financial matters would be divided if the relationship ends. It can address issues such as property division, spousal maintenance, inheritance rights, and any other financial matters that the couple wishes to include.
To be legally valid and enforceable in the UK, a prenuptial agreement must meet certain requirements. It should be entered into voluntarily by both parties without any pressure or duress. It should also be fair and reasonable at the time it was made and should not undermine the needs of any children involved. Full financial disclosure is typically required to ensure transparency and fairness.
It’s important to note that prenuptial agreements cannot address child custody or child support matters since these issues are determined based on the best interests of the child at the time of the divorce or separation.
It is recommended that individuals seeking a prenuptial agreement in the UK consult with a qualified family law solicitor to ensure that the agreement meets all the necessary legal requirements and reflects their intentions and circumstances accurately.
Post-nuptial agreement
A postnuptial agreement in UK law is a contract that a married couple or civil partners enter into after their marriage or civil partnership. It outlines how assets and finances would be divided if they were to separate. While similar to a prenuptial agreement, a postnuptial agreement is made after the marriage has occurred. Both agreements are not automatically legally binding, but courts consider them when deciding financial settlement.
The purpose of a post-nuptial agreement is to set out decisions reached between a couple about their finances, assets and property, in the event that the relationship breaks down. Different to a pre-nup, post-nuptial (post-nup) agreements are for people who are already married or in a civil partnership.
It’s important that both agreements are regularly updated and if children are or become involved, then the needs of those children should be taken into account within the agreement.
Are Pre & post nuptial agreements Legally binding in the UK
Pre and postnuptial agreements are not automatically legally binding in the UK. However, they are given significant weight and are generally enforceable if certain criteria are met. To increase the chances of enforceability, the agreements must be entered into freely, with both parties receiving independent legal advice, and full financial disclosure should be provided. The agreement should also be fair and reasonable at the time it was made and not undermine the needs of any children involved. While the court retains discretion to deviate from the terms of the agreement, as long as these requirements are met, pre and postnuptial agreements are highly persuasive in UK courts and can greatly influence the outcome of financial settlements in divorce or dissolution proceedings. It is important to consult with a qualified family law solicitor when creating these agreements to ensure they meet the necessary legal standards.
Contact Our Post And Pre-Nuptial Agreement UK specialist Solicitors located in Manchester, London and Birmingham
Call our expert multi-cultural post and pre-nuptial agreement UK expert solicitors today on: 0330 107 0107.
F v F - Acted for a German husband in a complex financial remedy matter. He decided to instruct IMD Solicitors after he had lost trust in his previously instructed solicitors and feared that he would not achieve a favourable outcome from the proceedings. The relevant assets were spread across the globe with some located in the UK (including a multi-million pound business), Gibraltar, Spain, Dubai, and Poland. The overall value of assets exceeded £24 million. The husband had been cut off from the matrimonial assets and excluded from control of the business that had been established by his family. The case involved the instruction of numerous experts, for business valuations, Capital Gains Tax reports, and opinions on the enforcement of orders in foreign jurisdictions, and dealing with several applications, including applications for orders to freeze assets, prevent the disposition of assets, for the joinder of parties, and to litigate conduct issues. The final result exceeded the client’s expectations.
L v L - We were instructed by a mother in a complex international children matter. She was required by orders of the UK courts to return the child to the UK from Poland. She had travelled with the child to Poland but, following unsuccessful application to extend her stay there in August 2017, she decided not to return to the UK because the child disclosed sexual abuse by a member of the paternal family and the father. In September 2018, the Polish court dismissed the father’s Hague Convention application for the child's return on the basis of Article 13(b), a decision which the father appealed. In March 2019, the father applied to the UK High Court for an order for the child’s return pursuant to the procedure set out in Article 11(6) – (8) of the Brussels IIA Regulation. Despite the father's unsuccessful Hague Convention application in Poland, the UK court ordered the return of the child. Article 11 does not allow the court of the returning country much discretion. After all of this, the mother instructed IMD Solicitors to apply to discharge the orders of the UK Court for the return of the child. Even in the face of the fact that most applications to discharge such return orders fail, we succeeded. We are currently awaiting a decision in the UK courts on a further application for the transfer of jurisdiction to the Polish courts where the mother resides with the child.
G v P - We represent a Spanish mother in respect of an urgent application for a Child Arrangements Order and Specific Issue Order in the UK seeking the relocation of the child to Spain. This was after the return of the child to the UK under Hague Convection proceedings which this mother lost in Spain.
She was asking for an order for the relocation of the child back to Spain and an urgent interim Child Arrangements Order to allow her to see the child pending the final outcome of the UK proceedings. IMD successfully argued that, regardless of the return of the child to the UK under the Hague Convention, the mother should be allowed unsupervised overnight contact with the child. We were delighted to be able to secure her contact with the child for Christmas and she said that it was the best Christmas gift she could have wished for. The outcome of the application for the relocation is pending.
S v V - We currently represent the father in Child Arrangements Order proceedings issued by the mother in relation to variation of a UK order made in the face of numerous other international proceedings. He is an Italian National who has been living in France for the last 20 years and the mother is a Lithuanian national. The child is now 11 years old and proceedings concerning the child have been ongoing in various jurisdictions for the majority of the child`s life. Contested divorce proceedings including child arrangements took place in Monaco. The French Court and authorities were also involved, and various proceedings had been ongoing between parties since 2013 in France and Monaco.
The parties’ divorce was pronounced in Monaco. Thereafter, in December 2020, the mother submitted an application to relocate to England with the child, and the relocation took place in June 2021. Upon relocation, the she lodged a child arrangement order application, seeking to register a judgment made in Monaco and to vary the same in respect of the contact arrangements between the father and the child. The father seeks for the child’s return to Monaco.
Due to the parties’ mutual allegations and the associated international elements, various authorities and courts that have been involved in the case, the local authority has become involved with the family and a guardian has been instructed to represent the child in the UK proceedings. At present, these proceedings in England are ongoing and the outcome of the professional reports regarding the family are awaited.
P v P - We have acted for the Respondent Husband in relation to the financial remedy proceedings in the UK. The parties had various assets in the UK and Romania consisting mainly of the portfolio of properties but conduct issues were raised by the Wife due to a business of the Husband over which she had lost control and her allegations of dissipation of assets. The value of assets excluding the business were in a region of £3 million.
K v K - We act in financial remedy proceedings for a wife who is a Polish national. The matter's complexity mainly comes from a dispute between the parties around land in Poland. Its value was initially in dispute but was then assessed by a joint expert to be in the region of half a million pounds. The total assets in this case are estimated to be worth over £1 million. The land in Poland is a subject to contract with a third party and is being leased as a photovoltaic (solar) farm. The division of the land to achieve an equal share of the assets is complicated due to the contract in place and plans for the future use of the land. Currently the parties are awaiting a final hearing but efforts are being made to reach a settlement with the aid of alternative dispute resolution and in order to save the parties money and avoid further delays.
R v O - We acted pro bono and worked together with a law firm in Poland to ensure that the Costa Rican Mother regains access to her child. The Mother's only child was abducted from the UK in 2014. The Mother was successful with the abduction case and the UK family courts ordered the return of the child. The orders were recognised in Poland but unfortunately due to various issues with the Mother's immigration status and court's delays in Poland, the orders were never enforced. The Mother was facing removal from the UK and prospects of never seeing her child again. We have corresponded with various courts in Poland dealing with international abduction matters and we decided that an application for contact should be issued rather than any proceedings for further enforcement of the orders, as the Mother had not seen the child for around 7 years. At the same we secured the Mother's stay in the UK making successful outside of immigration rules application to extend her stay. We now receive regular photos from the Mother with her daughter, as face to face contact is taking place. We helped to secure an order of the Polish courts for the Mother to see the child regularly in person, whilst when she instructed us she was facing a prospect of never seeing her child again and being deported to Costa Rica.
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