Legal Question in Family Law in Pennsylvania

Re: marrying a man with 2 ''illegitimate'' children

I believe you are asking two separate questions. The first is your liability for the support of your prospective husband's children from his former relationship. In general, the income and assets of a spouse who is not a parent of the children are not considered assets or income for purposes of child support. However, your assets may be taken into account in certain situations where they have an impact on the living expenses of your spouse.

The second question concerns maintaining your assets separately during marriage and in the event of your new spouse's death. As you probably are aware, any assets acquired during marriage are marital. In addition, any increase in value of assets brought to the marriage is marital property. In the event of your spouse's passing, his children as his heirs would have claims to this property.

You and your prospective spouse, prior to marriage, can make an agreement regarding your intentions concerning these assets, including what should be considered separate or joint and what effect the death of a spouse should have. This would be done through a prenuptial agreement. You would need to have this drafted by an experienced attorney, because there are strict requirements which must be met for the agreement to pass muster as a valid contract.

If my office can be of service to you, please feel free to call. I wish you the best.

Ilene Young

Young Law Office ~ 50 East Court Street, Doylestown, PA 18901 ~ 215-348-5448

NOTICE

As you are not a client of our firm, discussion of the above topic is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Applicability of the legal principles discussed may differ substantially in individual situations, different counties, or in different states. If you have a specific concern or legal problem, do not rely on these materials. Be sure to seek the advice of an attorney about your particular situation and facts.

Re: marrying a man with 2 ''illegitimate'' children

I highly recommend that you speak to an attorney and discuss strategies to protect your assets and income. While his children would not have a direct claim against your assets or income they could be used to show his standard of living and could result in a higher child support order being entered against him. Additionally, if he were to die without a will any assets in his name might create a claim by the children for a portion of those assets. I offer free consultations.