Are Prenuptial Agreements going overboard?
Take out the Trash or else!
As a Mississippi Divorce lawyer, I wish more couples gave serious thought to having a prenuptial agreement, especially when it is not the first marriage for both. Unfortunately, many get caught up in the romance of the relationship and fail to look at the realities of marriage. Well, it seems some folks are giving more thought to their marital expectations and entering into prenuptial agreements with "lifestyle clauses."
According to a fellow blogger, "lifestyle clauses" are popping up in many modern prenuptial agreements. Although properly executed prenuptial agreements are enforceable in Mississippi, I'm not sure our courts are willing to enforce some of these "lifestyle clauses." Here are some examples.
An intimacy clause that governs how often the married couple will have sex. I'll leave it to Letterman and Leno for the jokes on that one.
A clause that prohibits a spouse from gaining too much weight. Ladies, I'm only reporting, not coming up with these.A clause that sets out how much free time one spouse can have. Guys, your days at deer camp may be limited.
And my favorite--a clause which limits the amount of time the in-laws can stay at your house (no more than 2 consecutive days in one case) and how much time you have to stay at the in-law's place.
While one of the best preventions to divorce is ensuring you and your soon-to-be spouse have similar expectations of married life--meaning you have to talk about things such as religion, child-rearing, money, etc.--as well as being able to say "I'm, sorry" when you mess up, these "lifestyle clauses" appear more like the forming of a business than a marriage.
However, I advocate that you talk with one another about your financial future and make sure both of you are protected before you say, "I do." A properly drafted prenuptial agreement can offer you peace of mind in those cases where the marriage does not work. A thought few relish, but a reality nonetheless.
