Legal Question in Family Law in Texas

Is there any clause that could be written in a prenup to deter the spouses from asking for divorce first? I.e. similar to the "cheating clause"--a clause which should specify maybe a financial or other kind of penalty for the spouse who wants the divorce.


Asked on 11/05/13, 10:41 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

Fran Brochstein Attorney & Mediator

I assume that you understand that you both have to have attorneys representing you in the pre-nup in order for the pre-nup to be valid in the State of Texas?

So talk to your attorney about this matter.

The current pre-nup used by most attorneys has been tested many times and has been held to be valid. So most attorneys want to used the "standard" form in the TX Family Practice Manual and not vary from it too much.

I also recommend that you also execute a post-nup after the marriage -- so talk to your attorney about this too. That makes it iron-clad! You need to execute the post-nup within 30 days of the marriage! Most people don't know about the post-nup agreement and it's vital!

It shows that you really intended what you meant in the pre-nup agreement.

You can put all sorts of clauses into a pre-nup but it might make it invalid later - so be careful.

And, remember these clauses are normally mutual!

If you need an attorney, look on this website and on www.avvo.com

I recommend that you allow your future spouse to select her/his own attorney to represent her/him in the pre-nup. You don't want your future spouse claiming that you "forced" or "selected" the attorney that he/she used. The future spouse needs to select the attorney that they use -- even if you pay for it.

If you need a referral to an attorney, you can email me at [email protected]

I only mediate these days.

Good luck.

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Answered on 11/06/13, 8:09 am


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