If people are unaware of how important this document is, family lawyers Edmonton says they may put themselves at risk. Or at very least, they may be leaving themselves open to a legal battle if they get divorced, and they need to negotiate using lawyers.
Ultimately, while 40% of all marriages end in divorce in Canada, this means a large percentage of people who never thought that they would have to negotiate the terms of the divorce are going to be doing it at one point. Therefore, by creating a prenuptial agreement, can ensure that their negotiating the most important aspects of their divorce, while they are still on good terms.
However, there is a lot of questions that people have that can help them understand the importance of this legal documents, and if they should get one prior to their marriage. Family lawyers Edmonton says one of the most common questions they get is what if a partner refuses to sign a prenuptial agreement? This is an extremely important question, and one that does not have an easy legal answer. The problem is, nothing can convince or force them to sign, if they do not agree with it. The reason why, is because if anyone feels undue pressure to sign the document, that in and of itself renders it non-legally binding.
Therefore, the recommendation by family lawyers Edmonton is for couples to start talking about prenuptial agreements early on in their relationship, hopefully by the time they get engaged, but well before it is time for them to get married. By being on the same page about what a prenuptial agreement is for, and how it can help them can help ensure that they are entering into this agreement of their own free will, and with the best of intentions.
If they do not agree, the best course of action says family lawyers Edmonton is that the partners have an open and honest conversation with each other, and hopefully get to the bottom of the reason why they are reluctant to sign or negotiate the contract. And very least, they may be willing to have a chat with their own lawyer, that may end up resolving the issue.
But at the end of the day, if a partner refuses, the other partner may have to make the decision if they are willing to get married without this contract in place says family lawyers Edmonton. Or if they are not willing to get married anymore.
The next question that is often asked when drafting up prenuptial agreement is: can both parties use the same lawyer for the prenuptial agreement? This is a question, because many people believe that they are going to be able to save money by using the same lawyer. However, family lawyers Edmonton says that not only is this not allowed, and actually will cause the agreement to not be legally binding. It is an absolute requirement of the legislation of the province that both parties must obtain separate legal counsel in order to understand, and sign the agreement for it to hold up in court.
Family Lawyers Edmonton | What To Consider When Drafting Prenuptial Agreements
Many people misunderstand the reason why prenuptial agreements exist Says family lawyers Edmonton. And while it is true, the very wealthy often use it to avoid having to split their assets or their wealth with partners in the event of a divorce, this does not immediately make them a bad guy.
In fact, most people should aim to protect all of their own assets and property in the event of a divorce. Therefore, by understanding that it is not a tool of a bad guy, people can create their own prenuptial agreements, with their own specifics, that can ensure that it is representing them very clearly.
There are many questions that people often have for family lawyers Edmonton that can help them understand not only the importance of this legal documentation, but how they can use that in their relationship to protect themselves as well as their loved ones. One of the first questions that people have is what paperwork is needed to get to a lawyer to start drafting a prenuptial agreement? Ultimately, the most important things that requires paperwork is an accounting of all of their assets and all of their liabilities.
This means all of the supporting documents that proves their assets and liabilities including credit card statements, all bank statements, RRSPs and investments. Person also needs to bring to their lawyer documentation of their income stream, which includes all of their personal tax returns for the last several years, corporate tax returns for businesses they own, or own shares in.
They need to provide all of their T4 and T5 slips for the past 2 to 3 years, and any other income streams that they have. Ultimately, family lawyers and intent says the goal will be both parties to exchange for complete information financial with each other. If one person withholds financial information from the other, this puts the entire agreement at risk.
The next question that people often have for family lawyers Edmonton when creating an prenuptial agreement is: how can people be sure that the agreement will be valid and legally binding? This is an extremely important question, because people need to ensure that they are following the legal requirements of the legislation of the province that they live in.
If they do not meet these legal criteria’s, the lawyers involved will not be able to give their clients any legal assurances that the contract will be legally binding. Therefore, if one person decides to challenge the prenuptial agreement in a court of law, and these protocols were not followed, it could cause the entire agreement to be thrown out of court.
Therefore, people need to ensure that there following all of the legal requirements, and getting a certificate of acknowledgement, certificate of legal advice, property act acknowledgements as well as ensure that they are signing it of their own free will.