A prenuptial agreement, also known as antenuptial agreement, premarital agreement, or prenup, is a contract entered into prior to marriage setting the terms for separation. In general, provisions that tend to unreasonably encourage divorce or separation are unenforceable on grounds of public policy.
For example, in Gottlieb v. Gottlieb, the Supreme Court of New York, Appellate Division, First Department noted that the prenuptial agreement in question was the product of months of negotiations among the parties and their attorneys. This agreement contained the distribution of assets, spousal maintenance and health insurance, inheritance rights, etc., in the event of a divorce. The court emphasized that public policy is in strong favor of parties defining their own interests through premarital contracts; a duly executed prenuptial agreement has the same presumption of legality as other contracts. In fact, in Anonymous v. Anonymous, the same court declared that a prenuptial agreement is presumed to be valid and controlling unless and until the party challenging it meets their high burden to set it aside.
[Last updated in January of 2024 by the Wex Definitions Team]