Legal Question in Family Law in Pennsylvania
prenuptial agreement
I am about to get married on October, 2005. I will be marrying a man who has a daughter age 6 who lives with her mother in Staten Island, NY. He gets to see her every two weeks for two days out of the weekend. I bought a home under my name only where we have been living together for 9 months. He paid some money toward closing cost and helps pay half of the mortgage. I would like to protect my assets as well as my savings acct, 401K plan, social security, etc. I do not wish to incur any debts which he has in his name only if something were to happen and nor do I wish for his ex to get any of my money if he were to default in his child support payments. Please advise what I need to do in philadelphia, pennsylvania in order to protect myself. My fiance has no problems in me having a prenuptial prepared because he doesn't want his ex receiving any of our money. Also, at this present time we have no joint accounts nor creditcards together because he's afraid the child support at any time can tap (he has no arrears pending either). I have great credit he is working in correcting his debts (which do not exceed $8,000.00) At this moment, I make more them he does, but will change in a month he'll make more. Thank you.
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: prenuptial agreement
In general, a person can protect their assets with a prenuptial agreement, provided that the agreement clearly was the product of informed agreement. By this I mean that the terms of the agreement are not a boilerplate form but specific to the individual's needs, both parties have disclosed all their assets and liabilities and, also important, each party has been advised of the rights they are giving up by signing the agreement - preferrably both have been independently advised by counsel.
I wish you the best.
Ilene Young
Civil and Family Practice
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: prenuptial agreement
You can of course have a prenuptial agreement drafted which will protect any assets that the agreement provides will be protected.
Feel free to call or E-mail me on a free initial basis.
Re: prenuptial agreement
The general rule is that a new spouse has no obligation to pay the obligations of support. However, your assets and income can be considered by the court to modify the support off of guidelines if there is a substantial disparity in Living Standard. For example, Mother and child live in 1 Bedroom apt. she makes $1,000 a month. Father makes $2,000 a month and new wife make $3,000 a month and owns a 5 bedroom home. The court could order the father to pay more than guidelines so that the parties lviving standard is not disparate. The limitation would be 50% of the father's income. A prenuptial agreement might be of use. A couple of useful tips. Get it done early. Agreements tend to get tossed when they are completed close to the wedding date. Have him also get a lawyer to review and explain what's in the agreement. I offer free consultations.
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