Love is a beautiful thing. And when you meet “The One” and decide to marry, you hope to live happily ever after “till death do you part.” But not all love stories last a lifetime. This is why it is not uncommon for couples to sign prenuptial agreements before walking down the aisle.
A prenuptial agreement, or as prenup as it is commonly referred to, is a legal document that soon-to-marry couples sign to establish each party’s financial rights should the marriage end in a divorce. But your prenup has to be valid to hold up in the event of a divorce. Here are three instances when the court can invalidate your prenuptial agreement.
If it is fraudulent
A prenup is a legal document, and this means that it cannot be fraudulent. A prenup is deemed fraudulent when either party fails to make full disclosure of all their assets at the time of drafting and signing the document.
If you have evidence that your spouse either withheld some assets or undervalued their possessions at the time of signing the document, you may petition the court to nullify it during divorce proceedings.
If it is too one-sided
In order to hold up, a prenup must be reasonable. Most often, the court will not focus on the “fairness” of the prenup as long as both parties agree to it. If the prenup is extremely lopsided where one party gets everything, however, then the court will throw it out.
There was coercion
A contract that is entered into under pressure cannot hold up in court. If your spouse coerced, tricked or manipulated you into signing the prenup, then you can petition the court to nullify the agreement. The same is true of a contract that is entered into while one party does not have the testamentary capacity to understand what they are getting into.
Safeguarding your rights
A prenuptial agreement is one of the most important legal documents you can ever sign. Learning more about Colorado prenuptial agreement laws can help you avoid pitfalls that can invalidate your prenup.