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Prenuptial agreement a practical solution to sticky situation
BY CANDICE CHOI The Associated Press

    NEW YORK — If celebrity love lives were morality tales, the prevailing lesson would be: Don’t forget the prenup.
    It’s a message that should resonate with a wide swath of the population. With so many more blended families and dual-income households, family finances have become more complicated across the board.
    A prenuptial agreement can lessen the potential for a messy divorce by spelling out each party’s rights to assets brought into the marriage, as well as those acquired as a couple.
    “What you’re doing is deciding exactly how you’re going to treat your assets, rather than having state laws decide for you,” said Gary Nickelson, president of the Chicago-based American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers.
    Coming to terms with whether you need a prenup is only a first step, however. You and your partner then need to lay bare your finances and voice expectations for what could be an ugly scenario. Finally, you’ll need to find an attorney to put it all in writing.
    As uncomfortable as it sounds, it’s a safeguard worth considering for anyone with significant assets.
    About 40 percent of marriages in recent times ended in divorce, although the figure varies depending on age, income and education level, according to Betsey Stevenson, who specializes in family and public policy at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Her estimates are based on Census data.
    So before you join the seasonal wave of couples taking their vows, ask whether a prenup makes sense.
IS IT RIGHT FOR ME?
    Prenups aren’t just for the fabulously rich. They can play a pivotal role in protecting people at all income levels.
    One of the more common reasons to get a prenup is to protect the interests of children from a prior marriage. A sizable portion of assets automatically go to a spouse upon death in most states, but this can be avoided by using a prenup. Unlike wills, a prenup requires your partner to sign off on giving up those rights.
    Another scenario when a prenup makes sense is when there’s a significant disparity in wealth. It’s also worth considering if you or your spouse-to-be owns a small business or a stake in a family business; a prenup can ensure that ownership isn’t contested in a divorce.
    Not everyone needs a prenup, of course.
    “When a couple is starting from scratch and there are less assets brought in, there’s not as big a need,” said Greg Womack, a certified financial planner and president of Womack Investment Advisers in Edmond, Okla.
HOW MUCH WILL IT COST?
    Getting a prenup won’t be cheap.
    Even for a couple with modest assets, the cost could total a couple of thousand dollars. An attorney might charge about $1,500 to draw up the document, either for a flat fee or at an hourly rate. Your partner would also want a separate attorney to avoid a conflict of interest. ................>>>>............>>>>..............http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....amp;EntityId=Ar00600

Well, I guess you can throw the word 'trust' out the window, huh?

There is no trust when the government is doing the marrying......prenups come from our legal beagal government......certainly not in religious
ordained classes.......

Mr/Mrs Smith....do you trust the government....then by all means start writing it up........and dont forget to look up value/worth/wealth......
and dont look away from the mirror until you have the reflection memorized........