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Prenuptial Agreements

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Prenuptial & Postnuptial Agreements

Protecting What You've Built — Before and During Your Marriage

A prenuptial agreement — also known as a premarital agreement or “prenup” — is a contract between future spouses entered into before a marriage or civil union. Its terms establish the rights and obligations of each spouse in the event of a divorce or dissolution, and settling those terms in advance can spare both spouses enormous emotional and financial difficulty later. Far from planning for failure, a well-crafted prenuptial agreement is financial planning for the marriage itself.
In New Jersey, prenuptial agreements are governed by the Uniform Premarital and Pre-Civil Union Agreement Act (UPAA), N.J.S.A. 37:2-31 et seq., which requires that the agreement be in writing, signed by both parties, and accompanied by a complete and accurate statement of each party’s assets. The agreement takes effect upon the marriage. A New Jersey prenuptial agreement may address:

The rights and obligations of each party in any property of either or both of them, whenever and wherever acquired
The right to buy, sell, use, transfer, exchange, lease, mortgage, encumber, dispose of, or otherwise manage and control property
The disposition of property upon separation, divorce, dissolution, death, or any other event
The payment, modification, or elimination of spousal support (alimony)
The making of a will, trust, or other instrument to carry out the agreement
Ownership and disposition of life insurance death benefits
The choice of state law governing the agreement — critical for couples likely to relocate
Any other matter, including personal rights and obligations, not in violation of public policy

Since a 2013 amendment to the UPAA, a New Jersey prenuptial agreement can be set aside as unconscionable only based on the circumstances at the time it was signed — not at the time of the divorce. That change made properly drafted and fully disclosed agreements significantly harder to challenge, and it makes the quality of the drafting more important than ever.

High-Net-Worth & Professional Athletes

We counsel professional athletes, entertainers, executives, and business owners on agreements built for complex wealth:

Contract & bonus income
Signing bonuses, guaranteed money, and performance incentives — what stays separate, what becomes marital.

Endorsements & NIL
Income from your name, image, and likeness, long after the playing days end.

Trades & relocation
Choice-of-law provisions that keep your NJ agreement enforceable in any state.

Privacy
Confidentiality provisions that keep your finances out of public view.

Learn more below ↓

Considering a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement? Contact Adinolfi, Roberto & Burick, P.A. today. Our attorneys — including partners certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as Matrimonial Law Attorneys — will negotiate and draft an agreement built to be upheld by the New Jersey Family Courts.

Call 856-428-8334

Prenuptial Agreements for Professional Athletes & High-Net-Worth Individuals

Our attorneys counsel professional athletes, entertainers, executives, physicians, and business owners throughout the South Jersey and Philadelphia region on sophisticated marital agreements. High earners — and professional athletes in particular — face planning challenges that a standard prenuptial agreement simply does not address:

Compressed earning windows. An athlete may earn the majority of lifetime income in a handful of seasons. An agreement must protect that income while remaining fair enough to be enforced.
Complex compensation. Signing bonuses, guaranteed versus non-guaranteed contract money, performance incentives, deferred compensation, and league pension and annuity benefits each raise distinct questions about what is separate property and what becomes marital.
Endorsement, image, and NIL income. Earnings tied to a person’s name, image, and likeness — often continuing long after retirement — should be addressed expressly.
Trades and relocation. Athletes move. A carefully drafted choice-of-law provision keeps a New Jersey agreement effective when a career takes a couple to another state.
Privacy. Confidentiality provisions can keep financial terms — and any future dispute — out of public view. Our firm handles every matter with discretion.
A professional team. We coordinate with agents, business managers, accountants, and financial advisors so the agreement fits the client’s full financial picture.

Timing matters: courts look closely at agreements signed on the eve of a wedding. Whether you are entering a new contract season or planning a wedding, the time to begin is early.

When Is a Prenuptial Agreement Advisable?

Although no one wants to assume a marriage will end in divorce, there are situations in which a prenuptial agreement is especially advisable:

Professional athletes, entertainers, and others with substantial current or anticipated future earnings
Second marriages — protecting children of previous marriages
Marriages later in life — preserving assets accrued before the marriage
Family or closely held businesses — keeping business interests out of equitable distribution
A significant disparity in the parties’ assets or income
One spouse carrying significant debt
One spouse leaving a lucrative career before or during the marriage
Expected inheritances or interests in family trusts

Postnuptial Agreements in New Jersey

A postnuptial (or mid-marriage) agreement is a contract between spouses entered into after the wedding that addresses many of the same subjects as a prenup — property rights, spousal support, and what happens on divorce or death. But a word of caution: New Jersey treats these agreements very differently than prenups, and far more skeptically than many other states.
Postnuptial agreements are not governed by the UPAA. Under New Jersey case law — Pacelli v. Pacelli (1999) and, more recently, Steele v. Steele (2021) — a mid-marriage agreement demanded in an otherwise intact marriage is viewed as inherently coercive, because one spouse is bargaining under the threat of losing the family itself. Courts apply a heightened “dual fairness” standard: the agreement must be fair and equitable both when it is signed and when it is enforced, and even the involvement of experienced attorneys on both sides will not save an agreement born of an ultimatum.
The agreements New Jersey courts most reliably enforce in this setting are true reconciliation agreements — where the marriage has genuinely deteriorated to the brink of separation or divorce, and the agreement is the consideration for saving it. In that context, a properly drafted agreement with full financial disclosure and independent counsel for each spouse can be upheld.
If your circumstances have changed during the marriage — a new business, a major contract, an inheritance — a postnuptial agreement may not be the right (or an enforceable) tool in New Jersey. Our attorneys will give you an honest assessment and, where appropriate, recommend alternatives such as trusts and estate planning instruments that can accomplish similar goals on far firmer legal ground. Knowing the difference is precisely why experienced matrimonial counsel matters.

Improperly Drafted Agreements Can Be Declared Invalid

A prenuptial agreement is only enforceable if both parties enter into it voluntarily, without coercion, and with full and fair disclosure of each other’s earnings, property, and financial obligations. Each party must have the opportunity to consult independent legal counsel — and although the statute permits that right to be waived in writing, courts look far more favorably on agreements where both parties had their own attorneys. We insist on it.
New Jersey prenuptial agreements cannot bind a court on child custody or child support. Those decisions are made at the time of divorce based on the child’s best interests, and any provision that attempts to fix custody or limit a child’s right to support will not be enforced. An agreement may also be set aside as unconscionable — for agreements signed after June 2013, judged as of the moment of signing — where a party lacked disclosure, adequate knowledge of the other’s finances, or access to independent counsel. Getting these details right at the drafting stage is precisely why experienced matrimonial counsel matters.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are prenuptial agreements enforceable in New Jersey?

Yes. New Jersey enforces prenuptial agreements under the UPAA, and a 2013 amendment made properly drafted agreements harder to challenge: unconscionability is now judged at the time the agreement was signed, not at the time of divorce.

Can a prenup or postnup decide child custody or child support?

No. Child custody and child support are always determined at the time of divorce based on the best interests of the child. Any provision purporting to decide them in advance is unenforceable.

Do we each need our own lawyer?

Each party must have the opportunity to consult independent counsel, and while that right can be waived in writing, separate representation is the single best way to ensure the agreement holds up. One attorney cannot represent both parties.

We’re already married — can we still sign an agreement?

Sometimes, but New Jersey courts view mid-marriage agreements with real suspicion. The agreements most likely to be enforced are reconciliation agreements — signed when the marriage has deteriorated to the brink of divorce and the agreement is what saves it. An agreement demanded in an otherwise intact marriage may be found coercive and unenforceable no matter how well it is drafted. Consult an experienced matrimonial attorney before assuming a postnup will protect you; often a trust or estate planning tool is the sounder path.

How far in advance of the wedding should a prenup be signed?

As early as possible. Agreements signed days before a wedding invite claims of pressure or coercion. Ideally, begin the process months ahead so both parties have ample time for disclosure, negotiation, and review.