We Play Hard. We Play Fair.
You signed the agreement before the wedding. Perhaps it has been sitting in a file for years while your finances, property, careers, and family circumstances changed around it. Now divorce is a possibility, and a much more immediate question has emerged: What does that agreement actually mean for you today?
Disputes over prenuptial and postnuptial agreements can affect some of the most important financial issues in a divorce. One spouse may expect the agreement to control, while the other questions whether it is enforceable or how a particular provision should be interpreted. At Restovich, Braun & Associates our family law attorneys represent clients when existing marital agreements become part of a divorce or related dispute.
A prenuptial agreement, also called an antenuptial agreement, is entered into before marriage. When divorce occurs, the agreement may affect financial issues that would otherwise need to be resolved under Minnesota divorce law.
Depending on the agreement and the law that applies to it, its provisions may address matters such as:
That can make an existing agreement an important part of a Minnesota divorce. But having a signed document does not necessarily resolve every financial issue. The spouses may disagree about whether the agreement applies, what a particular provision means, or whether all or part of the agreement should be enforced.
Before relying on a prenuptial agreement—or assuming you are bound by every provision—it is important to determine what effect the agreement may have under Minnesota law.
That analysis can involve several questions:
The answers can affect what happens next. One spouse may seek to enforce the agreement as written. The other may argue that a provision—or the agreement itself—should not control. There can also be disagreements about interpretation even when neither spouse disputes the agreement’s overall validity.
The date matters because Minnesota substantially revised its law governing antenuptial and postnuptial agreements in 2024. The revised statutory requirements apply to agreements executed on or after August 1, 2024. Older agreements may require analysis under different legal rules.
For antenuptial agreements governed by the current statute, Minnesota law addresses procedural fairness through requirements involving financial disclosure, independent legal counsel, voluntariness, execution formalities, and timing before the marriage.
Under the current law, an antenuptial agreement generally receives a statutory presumption of enforceability when the applicable requirements are satisfied and the agreement is entered into and executed at least seven days before the marriage. An agreement executed closer to the wedding is not automatically unenforceable, but the burden of establishing enforceability can be different.
A postnuptial agreement is entered into after the marriage has begun. Although it can address many of the same financial subjects as an antenuptial agreement, Minnesota law places additional requirements on postnuptial agreements.
Under Minnesota’s current statute, each spouse must be represented by separate legal counsel when a postnuptial agreement is executed. Other statutory requirements concerning matters such as disclosure, voluntariness, and execution also apply to agreements governed by the current law.
Timing can become particularly important if the marriage ends soon after the agreement is signed. If either spouse begins a legal-separation or dissolution proceeding within two years after a postnuptial agreement was executed, Minnesota law creates a presumption that the agreement is unenforceable. The spouse seeking enforcement then has the burden of establishing that the agreement is fair and equitable.
This does not mean a postnuptial agreement automatically fails because a divorce begins within two years. It does mean that the timing can change how the court evaluates enforcement.
When an agreement becomes part of a divorce, the dispute may be about much more than whether the document is technically valid. Its terms can change the questions the spouses need to resolve.
Consider property acquired during the marriage. Without an agreement governing that property, Minnesota’s ordinary rules for property division may determine how it is classified and divided. When a prenuptial agreement addresses the same asset, the parties may first need to determine whether the agreement governs it and how the relevant provision should be interpreted.
Business interests can create similar questions. An agreement may address ownership or rights in a business, while the value or financial circumstances surrounding that business may have changed substantially during the marriage. The precise language of the agreement becomes important when determining what it does—and does not—cover.
Spousal maintenance can also become part of the dispute. If an agreement contains provisions addressing support between spouses, those terms may need to be considered alongside the legal issues involved in a spousal maintenance claim.
These disagreements can make the marital agreement one part of a larger financial dispute rather than a separate issue. Understanding how the agreement interacts with the rest of the divorce is therefore important when deciding how to approach the case.
Restovich, Braun & Associates is a family-run Rochester law firm with roots in the community dating to 1992. Our attorneys are experienced litigators who understand that disputes involving marital agreements can affect a client’s property, finances, business interests, and plans after divorce.
Our lawyers approach these cases by examining the agreement within the context of the larger family law dispute. Depending on the issues, that may include analyzing the law that applies to the agreement, reviewing relevant financial information and the circumstances surrounding execution, interpreting disputed provisions, and determining how the agreement affects other issues in the divorce.
When enforcement or interpretation is contested, our attorneys can advocate for a client’s position through negotiation or litigation. Our law firm takes a practical approach to these disputes, focusing on the provisions and financial issues that can materially affect the outcome rather than creating conflict where it is unnecessary.
Our lawyers also work collaboratively when a case involves overlapping family law, financial, or litigation questions. That broader perspective can be particularly valuable when a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement affects several parts of a divorce at once.
If you have a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement and divorce is underway or being considered, understanding its potential effect can help clarify the financial issues ahead. The same is true if your spouse is relying on an agreement that you believe should not control some or all of the divorce.
Our attorneys represent clients in Rochester, throughout southeastern Minnesota, and elsewhere in Minnesota when appropriate. To discuss an existing prenuptial or postnuptial agreement with our family law team, contact Restovich, Braun & Associates online.
