Prenuptial Agreements And Alimony Considerations
Recent changes to Florida’s alimony rules have rendered some prenuptial agreements bad deals. If you signed a prenuptial agreement in which you agreed to pay permanent alimony to your spouse in the event of a divorce, then you may be chagrined to find out that Florida has done away with permanent alimony in the state in favor of limited durational alimony. Can your prenup force you to pay permanent alimony even if Florida’s laws no longer support it? In this article, the Orlando divorce lawyers at Greater Orlando Family Law will discuss how prenuptial agreements can impact alimony arrangements.
Prenuptial agreements trump state law
Prenuptial agreements (so long as they are valid and legally enforceable) will take precedence over state law. In other words, your written agreement with your spouse supersedes any laws passed by the state. That includes the recent ban on permanent alimony. The ban will change how prenuptial agreements are drafted in the future, but they cannot override a prenuptial agreement that has already been agreed upon and signed. If you signed a prenup that enforces permanent alimony after your divorce, the contract is legally binding, and you will have to pay your spouse permanent alimony. The ban has no effect on your legal obligations.
Should I draft a prenup that prevents me from paying alimony?
If your future spouse is willing to agree to sign a prenuptial agreement that waives their right to alimony under Florida law, then you can, by all means, place such a provision into a prenup. The prenuptial agreement would be enforceable, and you would never have to pay a dime in alimony. The tricky part is getting your spouse to sign away their rights pursuant to a divorce.
It’s worth noting that alimony is fairly rare in Florida anyway. Your prenuptial agreement may be attempting to prevent something that will likely never happen. For example, there would be no point in placing a provision into your prenuptial agreement that prevents permanent alimony since state law already does that. In addition, short-term marriages generally don’t produce alimony rulings by judges.
If your sole reason for drafting a prenuptial agreement is to prevent yourself from ever having to pay alimony, it may be best to save your money. Alimony is rarely awarded in divorce cases in Florida and an alimony award presupposes that the marriage lasted a long enough time to warrant the payment. In other words, it may just not be worth it. Your chances of paying alimony are slim in Florida.
But that doesn’t mean that prenuptial agreements are worthless. There are a number of ways to protect your interests using a prenuptial agreement. These include protecting a business you are bringing into the marriage or valuable assets you want to keep as separate property.
Talk to an Orlando, FL Family Law Attorney Today
Greater Orlando Family Law represents the interests of Florida residents who are considering marriage and want to discuss a prenuptial agreement. There are several good reasons—other than alimony—that you may want to have your future spouse sign a prenup. Call our Orlando family lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can guide you through the process today.
