Understand Fraudulent Prenuptial Agreement

In an uncommon ruling, the Supreme Court of the State of Utah affirmed a lower court ruling to set aside a prenuptial agreement entered into between a couple not living in Utah. The ruling allowed the plaintiff to pursue divorce relief without the stipulated protections offered by the prenuptial agreement.

For many reasons, a prenuptial agreement is a good idea. Our firm provides guidance and experienced legal support drafting tight but fair prenuptial agreements for clients. Prenuptial agreements identify assets considered separate property and provide structure for future discussion if the marriage relationship breaks down. Such agreements address other points as well, including: (1) Identification of debt, alimony and tax liabilities; (2) Protection of your business assets; (3) protection and preservation of assets for children of a previous marriage; and (4) agreed upon care for parents or other dependents.

In the case of Petrakis v Petrakis, Peter Petrakis presented his bride-to-be with a prenuptial agreement six weeks prior to their wedding in 1998. The agreement stated Mr. Petrakis would retain all assets acquired during the marriage. Ms. Petrakis would be paid $25,000 for each year they were married.

Until four days before the wedding Ms. Petrakis refused to sign the prenuptial agreement. In the shadow of the altar, Mr. Petrakis reportedly stated he would tear up the agreement if the couple had children, after which the agreement was signed. When the couple had children, Mr. Petrakis reneged on his oral promise to destroy the document.

Now worth approximately $20 million, the Supreme Court ruled Mr. Petrakis fraudulently induced Ms. Petrakis to execute the agreement and ruled in her favor.

The quality of a prenuptial agreement is clear when it is challenged in court. If interested in creating a solid prenuptial agreement, talk to my firm for experienced legal help.

Tell Your Kids The Truth During Divorce

When it comes to approaching the issue of divorce with your children, honesty is always the best policy. Of course, there are some caveats to mention, but you should never feel as though you must lie to your kids about what is happening during the divorce process. In fact, doing so could cause trust issues that will last a long time.

Instead, the following are a few tips that will help you to maintain good, open communication with your children as your divorce proceeds:

• Avoid sharing any inappropriate information: Just because you should be honest with your children does not mean you need to tell them anything inappropriate or that they don’t need to know. They either will not understand what you are telling them or it will cause them to resent you. It’s better to keep the grisly details of your divorce to yourself.

• Make sure your kids know they are not to blame: Your children should know they have no blame at all in the divorce. You can be honest (to an extent) about the reasons why you and your spouse are getting a divorce. Telling them that you “grew apart” or “no longer love each other” is appropriate and may be true, even when there’s lot more to the divorce.

• Avoid venting to your children: Again, honesty is not the same as sharing everything. You should not vent to your children or attempt to use them as your therapist — this is unhealthy and places a burden on them they are not prepared to handle. Save your complaints and your venting for your attorney, your actual therapist or your trusted friends and relatives.