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The legality and enforceability of a prenuptial agreement depends on a number of factors. If you are planning to prepare such an agreement before your marriage, you need to pay attention to these factors. Here are a few points you need to focus on when creating the prenuptial agreement.

Make sure both parties disclose details of all assets.  If the Court finds that any of the parties did not provide the details of all property, the prenuptial marriage agreement may stand invalid in case of divorce. Whether it is real estate property or cash, you need to disclose the relevant details in the agreement.

Make sure the agreement has provisions for property division. The disclosure of the assets alone would not suffice. You and your spouse need to determine the division of the assets in case of divorce. You should also consider the provisions for joint properties and any increase in property.

Make sure the agreement has details regarding debts incurred. It is necessary to put in the details of the way debts incurred before and after marriage by either of the parties would be dealt with. If you fail to include this clause, you may have to pay for the hefty debts that your spouse incurred.

Make sure the agreement has provisions for children. The rights and responsibilities with regard to the upbringing of the children need to be mentioned in the prenuptial agreement as well. You need to settle on different things, like who pays for the education and outline it in the agreement.

Make sure the agreement terms are fair. If the provisions of the prenuptial agreement are such that one of the spouses is left destitute according to it, the Court may not consider it valid. It is necessary for a prenuptial agreement to have an element of fairness to ensure its enforceability.

Make sure you get legal help. Appointing a prenuptial lawyer may seem to be an expensive option. However, it is better to seek legal advice and guidance from an expert to ensure that the agreement adheres to the UK laws. It is also important that the parties seek legal advice from different lawyers.

Make sure the agreement is in writing. The Court does not accept any oral agreement between the parties involved in a divorce. Therefore, it is necessary that everything you agree to is put into writing. You would also need to sign the document before a notary public to ensure its validity.

Deciding to divorce is not an easy decision for anyone to make, let alone an easy process to go through. However if you go into it with a full understanding of what is going to happen might make it a little more bearable. For one, you should recognise that you’ll have to enlist the services of a lawyer to help you navigate the complex legal proceedings.

So what exactly will your family law solicitor - London based or otherwise, it doesn’t matter – have to consider when guiding you through a divorce?

Children
If there are any children involved, you may wish either to fight for custody or work out a regime whereby you can have equal access to your children. This all depends on how amicable the separation has been. Sadly, in some cases, the whole thing can get quite ugly – particularly if one parent feels the other is unfit to care for his/her children. If you’ve been involved in quite an amicable break-up though, it might be easier just to decide that you will take car of them one week and your partner the next. Your lawyer will help you figure this out.

Possessions
If you have any joint possessions, like a car or a boat, then your lawyers will help you work out who receives what from the settlement. It might be based on who literally owns it (like if your partner’s name is on the car papers); or if you did literally jointly buy the possession, who has greater need for it – perhaps partially based on the your childrens’ requirements.

Property
This is always a tough one, because it can be hard to determine who should move out of any joint properties and who should stay. This again is a decision that may rest on what’s best for any children involved; for example, if one partner will have access through the five working days and the other on the weekends, favour may fall with the former. This is simply because it might provide a more solid base for the kids.