If you are planning to get married in New York, you need to think about how you will protect every asset you bring into the marriage. Even if you believe the marriage could never end in divorce, it’s still a good idea to have a plan in place to protect yourself should the unthinkable happen. This is best done using a prenuptial agreement. One important item to protect in that agreement is your pension.
It’s always smart to take a look at your legal options before entering into a contract, and marriage is a contract. You need to protect your assets — especially a pension. If your marriage ends in divorce and you didn’t have a prenup in place, you could lose your entire pension, or at least half of it.
You can and should include your pension in any prenup you create before exchanging vows. Whether you decide that half of the pension will go to your spouse in a divorce or if you will keep all of it is up to you and your future spouse, make sure that you have the provision written clearly.
The same can be said if you decide to create a postnuptial agreement. If you did not have a pension prior to marriage and have one now due to a new job, you might want to consider drafting such a document to protect the pension if you wind up getting a divorce.
Protecting the assets you bring into your marriage is important, even if you truly feel it will not end in divorce. You can never be too careful these days, especially when it comes to your finances and your pension, which will help you in retirement. A New York family law attorney can help you with whichever one of these agreements you decide to put in place.