Legal Question in Business Law in California

You can have a pre-nuptial agreement that details what would happen to property in case of a divorce. You should consult with a qualified family attorney because the agreements can be a bit tricky sometimes and, if your business were to become very successful, you want to be sure that the agreement would be enforced if you were to get divorced.

.........and, if you are already married, you can do a post-nuptial agreement!

California's community-property law is strongly slanted in the direction of making marriage a financial partnership and everything a couple has, earns or obtains community property. There are significant exceptions for property that was separate before the marriage and kept carefully segregated, and for gifts and inheritances of one of the spouses.

Nevertheless, the spouses may alter the effects of community-property law by contract. The contracted changes can be made before marriage or during marriage, and can change the character of property already owned - this is called a "transmutation," by the way - from community to separate, or vice-versa, or can change the character of property acquired in the future.

If your business does, or will, amount to something financially significant, the "paperwork" you are asking about should be an agreement written by an attorney who practices regularly in the specialty of "family law" -- such attorneys will have books containing sample form contracts that can be, and will need to be, slightly customized to fit your situation. Don't expect to find a pre-printed form where you can just fill in some blanks. On the other hand, this is not rocket science, nor are you asking the lawyer to re-write "War and Peace." An experienced family-law practitioner should be able to produce a satisfactory, heads-up agreement for your husband and you to execute within a few hours' work and for an agreed-upon in advance fee.

Finally, agreements like this don't have to be thought of entirely negatively, e.g., "What if we get divorced?" These property agreements may have great value for couples that NEVER get divorced, because they will also have an effect on inheritance rights - a married person has full control over who inherits his or her separate property, but less control over the disposition of community property.