Updated May 17, 2023
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A Wyoming prenuptial agreement (“prenup”) is a legal document that contains provisions regarding property rights, ownership, and distribution between two spouses. A prenup must be executed before the couple marries to be valid. Furthermore, both parties must have the option to seek individual legal counsel to help understand the complexities of a premarital agreement. A prenup may be voided by a court of law if one party is not given time to consult an attorney or if one party refuses to fully disclose their finances or properties (other factors are also considered by the court to determine the enforceability of an agreement).
Aside from property distribution, a prenuptial agreement can cover alimony, making of wills/trusts, choice of law, and life insurance policies. Prenuptial agreements are useful for couples with a large financial disparity between them, couples who are both bringing property or major debt to the marriage, and individuals who are remarrying and/or have children from a previous marriage.
Laws
Case – LUND v. LUND, 849 P.2d 731 (1993)
An antenuptial agreement is a contract entered into between two people in contemplation and consideration of marriage. The marriage provides the requisite consideration to bind both parties. The primary purpose of such agreements is to define and fix the respective property rights of the spouses before the marriage. Challenges to such agreements generally arise upon the death of one of the parties or upon dissolution of the marriage, as in this case. Most jurisdictions now view antenuptial agreements favorably, and validity usually is upheld upon this policy analysis: antenuptial contracts entered into between an adult husband and an adult wife in contemplation of marriage are favored by the law in that they tend to promote domestic happines and adjust property questions which might otherwise become the soure of much litigation.
Case – Laird v. Laird, 597 P.2d 463
There are a multitude of cases on the matter of financial disclosure in the context of an antenuptial contract. On this matter, we find no authority more sensible and useful than that propounded in In the Matter of the Estate of Borton, Wyo. 1964, 393 P.2d 808, 813, where this court held that the mere fact that detailed disclosure was not made will not necessarily void an otherwise properly executed antenuptial contract. It is not necessary that the complaining spouse be furnished with a financial statement of net worth and income.