Protecting your property and what you must know is essential for anyone wanting to get married.
Protecting your property, which includes your family home, investment properties, shares and any other items of value is very important.
Here is what you need to do to protect your property before marriage:
1. Consult an Australian Lawyer who has expertise in Binding Financial Agreements. The Family lawyer should have expertise in protecting property, including your home and investments.
2. Draft a Binding Financial Agreement, also known as Pre-nuptial agreements that refers to all your property and outlines the way that your property will be divided in the event that you and your fiance separate and get divorced in the future.
3. Provide a copy of the binding financial agreement to your fiance and make sure that you have discussed your financial situation well before, so there are no surprises.
4. To protect your property and ensure that the agreement that you sign with your fiance is without pressure on them, then make sure you give each other lots of time before the wedding date to think about the agreement.
5. You and your fiance will need to use independant lawyers and it is definitely best that you not find the lawyer for your partner and not pay for them. Each person should be free to choose who they want to represent them and be free to discuss any problems that arises with confidence and confidentiality.
6. One of the criteria of a valid Binding Financial Agreement is that you and your future spouse must each obtain a certifcate to say that you have each received independant legal advice about the effect of the agreement on the rights of that party and about the advantages and disadvantages, at the time that the advice was provided and this certificate must be attached to the Binding Financial Agreement or must be shown to the other lawyer or party.
The information provided here is of a general nature. Please consult us directly for legal advice specifically for your matter.