Pre-nup or equivilant?

needtoknow12

Hi,

Just looking for some advice.

Getting married in 6 months and looking for advice on a legal document that will ensure I will be entitled to our house that we currently own jointly in the event of the dissolution of the marraige?

Due to past circumstances both parties have agreed to this arrangement.

Is there such a thing as a pre-nuptial agreement that would secure this? or a legal document stating that one party will sign over the house to the other if the marraige was to end? and is it enforecable if things were to turn sour?

Any advice appreciated.

Thanks

Procrastastudy

Charter - so I'm going to treat this as a hypothetical and most likely get it wrong.

I don't think pre-nups have legal effect in Ireland.

That said if I used the search function I would find the answer. So either do that or rely on my crappy memory.

seb65

Agreed. I am under the impression that pre-nups are not recognized here. Everything is 50/50. Stand to be corrected though.

234

In England the Court of Appeal gave limited effect to a pre-nup at some point last year. Unless this becomes a major policy issue I can't imagine us not following suit. However, not the best way to ensure your future security when the waters are as yet un-tested.

Talk to a solicitor and they will probably have some creative suggestions. Maybe some form of conditional trust.

Plates

Wouldn't it be easier to just get the house signed over to you now?

needtoknow12

Thanks for the replies all.

We have currently no need to sign the house over to my name. This would be merely a requirement if the marraige was to end. As I have no legal background I was just wondering is there any sort of legal document that can be stipulated in a court of law during divorce proceedings?

Plates

Clearly I'm missing something here. Is there a drawback to signing it over now? It's not like you're going to do a runner - but if you did - it would probably end in divorce - in which case you'll have the house in your name.

Bear in mind - you should be clear about what stage you expect the house to be signed over to you in the event that the marriage doesn't work out. The following is a requirement before a divorce will be granted (vs. geting separated) - which could leave you in limbo for a number of years should things not work out:

"The parties must have been living apart from one another for a period amounting to four out of the previous five years before the application is made"

Procrastastudy

I'm not sure what the point of getting the house signed over to you is? IIRC the court will divide assets during the divorce.

If it looks like it's going south just bury her under the patio.

needtoknow12

Apologies Im probably not explaining this right. Basically the house would be signed over to me and all OTHER assets would be split 50:50. So in a nutshell this "legal document" would state that in the event of the marraige ending, the house would basically be mine and all other assets will be divided 50:50.

So really my question is "if the marraige was to end is there a legal way to ensure the house would be mine and mine alone or is it a case of agreeing in good faith?"

Thanks again all!

ResearchWill

needtoknow12 wrote: »

Apologies Im probably not explaining this right. Basically the house would be signed over to me and all OTHER assets would be split 50:50. So in a nutshell this "legal document" would state that in the event of the marraige ending, the house would basically be mine and all other assets will be divided 50:50.

So really my question is "if the marraige was to end is there a legal way to ensure the house would be mine and mine alone or is it a case of agreeing in good faith?"

Thanks again all!

Because of our constitution and proper provision only a court can decide on property after divorce. That said the court will take consideration of any agreement made before and during marriage. If the court is satisfied there is proper provision then ok but otherwise no.

Ken.

In addition to what folks are saying here i'd like to point out that if the house was mortgaged when a marriage breaks up banks are reluctant to let the house be signed over unless that person can show that they are capable of paying the instalments.

Cathy83

hi..I don't think there is any harm entering into an agreement, whether or not it will be fully enforceable is questionable but it has never really been decisively decided by the Courts. Traditonally pre nup agreements were considered to be against public policy becuase our Constitution has such a high regard for the family based on marriage that an agreement that potentially foresees the end of the marriage is deemed contrary to public policy but attitudes in this regard are changing. I would imagine the agreement is definitely something to consider and would have persuasive value even if it was not fully enforceable. I don't think signing the house over into your name now would make any difference, it will be considered a marital asset once you are married irrespective of whose name it is in, assuming it is the family home.

needtoknow12

thank you very much everyone who posted - appreciate it