Planning a Marriage? Start the Conversation Early.

Getting married is one of life’s most important commitments. While no one enters a marriage expecting it to end, discussing financial expectations before marriage can help couples avoid uncertainty and conflict in the future.

A marriage agreement, often called a prenuptial agreement or “prenup,” allows couples to establish clear expectations regarding property, debt, and support obligations before they marry. These agreements can provide certainty, protect assets, and ensure that both parties understand their rights and responsibilities.

What is A Marriage or Prenuptial Agreement?

A marriage agreement is a legal contract entered into by two people who are planning to marry or who are already married.

The agreement can address financial matters during the marriage and establish how certain issues will be handled if the relationship ends through separation, divorce, or death.

Marriage agreements are commonly used to:

• Protect assets acquired before marriage
• Protect family businesses or professional practices
• Preserve inheritances or family gifts
• Clarify ownership of property
• Address debt obligations
• Establish expectations regarding spousal support
• Protect children from prior relationships
• Reduce uncertainty and future disputes

What Can Be Included?

Common topics addressed in a marriage agreements include:

Property and Debt

• Property owned before marriage
• The family residence
• Future real estate purchases
• Investments and savings
• Pensions and retirement assets
• Business interests
• Responsibility for debts
• Gifts, inheritances, and windfalls

Spousal Support

Parties may establish expectations regarding:

• Whether spousal support will be payable
• Circumstances giving rise to support
• Duration of support
• Events that may terminate or trigger support obligations

Children

While parties often wish to discuss expectations regarding children, parenting arrangements and child support must ultimately comply with applicable law and the best interests of the child.

Pets

Marriage agreements can also address ownership and care of companion animals in the event of a separation. You can read more about this in our recent blog post here: What About the Dog? Divorce and Companion Animals

Independent Legal Advice

For a marriage agreement to have the greatest likelihood of being upheld if challenged in the future, it is important that both parties understand their rights and obligations before signing.

We strongly recommend that each party obtain independent legal advice before entering into a marriage agreement.

Although preparing a marriage agreement is often a collaborative process, our office can only represent one party to the agreement. The other party should obtain advice from a separate lawyer before signing.

Information You Will Be Asked to Provide

To prepare a marriage agreement, we typically require information including:

• Full legal names, addresses, and birthdates
• Anticipated wedding date
• Employment information and income
• Details regarding any prior marriages or relationships
• Information regarding children from current or prior relationships
• Assets and debts of each party
• Real estate holdings
• Investments and retirement assets
• Business interests
• Existing support obligations
• Information regarding pets

Full financial disclosure is an important part of preparing a marriage agreement and helps reduce the risk of future challenges to the agreement.

Preparing for your First Meeting

Before meeting with one of our lawyers, it can be helpful to consider:

• What property should remain separate
• What property should be shared
• Treatment of future increases in value
• Spousal support expectations
• The family residence
• Gifts and inheritances
• Pets
• Dispute resolution procedures
• What constitutes a separation
• Whether the agreement should be reviewed periodically
• What happens if one party dies
• Dispute resolution procedures
• What defines a separation

Cost

The minimum fee for a marriage agreement is typically $3,000, which is the initial retainer we generally request.

The final cost depends on the complexity of the agreement, the amount of financial disclosure required, and whether revisions are requested following review by the other party and their lawyer.

Most marriage agreements cost between $3,000 and $5,000 plus applicable taxes.

Timeline

Most marriage agreements are completed within two to three months.

However, where significant financial disclosure is required, revisions are requested, or the other party is obtaining independent legal advice, the process can take longer. We strongly recommend that both parties obtain independent legal advice before signing any agreement. We encourage couples to begin the process several months before their wedding.

If you require a marriage agreement on an expedited basis, we may be able to accommodate rush timelines for an additional fee. Rush requests are subject to lawyer availability, the complexity of the agreement, and the cooperation of both parties in providing information and reviewing drafts promptly.

Need Help?

If you are planning to marry and would like to discuss a marriage or prenuptial agreement, please contact our office at 604.853.0774 or by email to litigationcoldcalls@rdmlawyers.com to schedule a consultation with a member of our Family Law Team.

Because we can only represent one party to a marriage agreement, we recommend that you communicate with us using an email account that is private and accessible only by you. We do not recommend using a joint email account or sharing communications with your future spouse, as doing so may affect confidentiality and solicitor-client privilege.

If this is your first time meeting with a lawyer, we encourage you to read “Your First Litigation Consultation: What to Expect” before booking your consultation.