What’s Love Got to Do With It? Reasons to Sign a Pre- or Postnuptial Agreement

Available for Interviews: Teddi Ann Barry

Teddy Ann Barry, Esq. is a family attorney and writer who has been serving families through divorce and custody and has been practicing family law for over twenty years; and also comes with a wealth of experience in mediation and collaborative law. She is also the author of The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Divorce in Colorado.

What Teddi Ann Barry can say in an interview on
Pre- and Postnuptial Agreements:

    • Should you sign, a pre- or postnuptial agreement?
    • Couples are getting married later in life, meaning they come to marriage with assets. Assets can be anything from accumulated wealth, retirement accounts, inheritance, and separate business issues.
    • There is also the possibility of children from a previous marriage or relationship to consider when getting married.

    • Couples marry for love, but marriage is a contract legal arrangement in the eyes of the law. Therefore, we should not be naïve to believe that love conquers all.
    • Having a “marriage insurance” or “exit strategy” while you are in love is wise.
    • The battle couples face through a divorce can be resolved by creating a contract before marriage or even after the marriage if financial matters are going to change.
Some of the stories that made my clients wish they had a pre-nuptial agreement include:
    • The story of how one partner supported the other throughout the marriage and left without proper payment or consideration of everything “given to the marriage” in the end.
    • The story of one partner caring for the kids and the other partner arguing that he doesn’t deserve anything for that type of support.
    • Another issue is inheritance. It’s supposed to be separate from marital assets, but once a client co-mingles the funds by putting them into a joint account or re-titles inherited assets jointly, the situation changes.
A Prenuptial or Postnuptial Agreement can answer these questions:
    • Who invested how much into what you have?
    • What should you consider marital assets or separate property?
    • Who should pay what percentage of taxes if not filing jointly?

The financial aspects of the divorce become less complicated or contested if you follow this advice. Plus, you can walk away from the marriage knowing that you agreed to the terms when you were, in fact, in love. No matter how in love you are today, think about your future and the what-ifs of tomorrow. Put the pen to paper and contract the I wills before vowing I do.

 

Interview: Teddi Ann Barry

Teddi Ann Barry, Esq. is the Founder of Teddy Ann Barry, PSC., and has been an attorney for over twenty years. Other areas of law practiced are mediation and collaborative law. Teddy is based in the Cherry Creek office and practices family law exclusively. She is also the author of The Do-It-Yourself Guide to Divorce in Colorado: Get In, Get Out, Get Over It.

Teddy is a former guardian ad litem and Respondent parents’ counsel, representing the best interests of children placed in the custody of the State and the parents accused of abuse and neglect of their children by the State.

As an alumna of Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, for both her undergraduate and Juris Doctorate degrees, Teddy is proud to have been educated at Creighton University, which is one of 28 Jesuit Catholic universities throughout the country, that teaches, among many wonderful values, service.  I have been serving others in family law since 2000.

Teddy has been a business owner for over 17 years and continues to build a firm with experienced and well-respected professionals who can offer the highest level of client care, advocacy, skilled negotiation, and litigation if and when absolutely necessary.

 

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