What Should A Woman Ask For In A Prenup?

Too often, women enter marriage without considering how it could impact their financial future. You may choose to take time off for childbearing, step back from your career to raise children, and invest years into building a home without getting compensated. Without a prenup, you could be held responsible for your spouse’s debt and equally share business assets. 

Read our guide if you’re getting married soon and plan to sign a prenup: 

Protection of Premarital Assets

Any assets you bring into the marriage should remain yours if the relationship ends. These could include anything from real estate to stocks and fine jewellery. It can also outline what happens if the property appreciates in value during the marriage. 

Protection from Debt 

If your spouse has significant student loans, credit card debt, or business liabilities or may take on later during the marriage, you can stay protected. You must also include how you’ll handle joint debts. 

Spousal Support Terms 

If you plan to take time off work to raise children or support your spouse’s career, consider negotiating a minimum set spousal support amount in case of divorce. To make it more balanced, you can add a timeframe for support payments. For example, X years of marriage equals X years of support. 

Division of Future Assets and Investments

Spouses tend to buy properties, cars, or start a business together. In your prenup, you should include how jointly held assets will be divided, how will a shared home be managed, and how you plan to handle expenses for your children, if any. 

Career Protection 

Women are often the ones who take career breaks for family reasons, which has long-term impact on your career and savings. Your prenup can include compensation for lost wages, a fair division of savings and retirement contributions, and agreements about financial support while restarting a career post-divorce. 

Business Interests

Every family lawyer will advise you to protect your business in a prenup, no matter how small it’s currently. If you don’t have a clear agreement, your spouse could claim a share of your company. This could also be your chance to give you spouse shares in the business. 

Retirement and Pension Rights

Your prenup can include how CPP credits, workplace pensions, and RRSPs will be divided, whether pension contributions made during marriage will be split, and whether you’d like to protect individual retirement accounts from the other spouse. 

Family Inheritance and Gifts

Any inheritance acquired after marriage is considered marital property, especially if it was deposited in a joint account or used for a shared expense. 

Lifestyle Clauses

Marriage is a legal, emotional, and financial partnership. If you’ve been cheated on in previous relationships, you may want to place an “infidelity” clause. You could also have a social media agreement to limit how much your spouse can post about you online. Many couples also choose to get pet custody arrangements. 

Marriage is about love, and you should be able to talk about complicated things freely. If you have more questions or want our help to draft a prenup, schedule a consultation today.