Solicitors in Wakefield and Barnsley, GM Wilson Solicitors

A prenuptial agreement is an agreement entered into before a marriage to regulate how the parties are to hold their assets while they are married and potentially, how they are to be divided in the event of a divorce. An agreement can also be entered into if parties only intend to live together and not marry.

Historically courts have placed little weight on prenuptial/cohabitation agreements and they are not binding on the court. A prenuptial/cohabitation agreement cannot prevent the court from making what it considers to be a fair division of assets. However in recent cases the courts have taken prenuptial/cohabitation agreements into consideration as one of the circumstances which the court will bear in mind when deciding on the division of assets.

When deciding the weight (if any) to be placed upon a prenuptial/cohabitation agreement, the court has to determine whether the agreement was fair and genuine.