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Prenups and Walking Down the Aisle.

By John Dietz - Email Editor

Date : Aug 28, 2007

Dear Subcriber:

The subject for today is marriage. Marriage is one of those subjects that you love during the happy times, and you hate during the not so happy times. For the sake of this newsletter, we are going to take the “love” out of marriage.

Not fair, after all, what is marriage without love? Marriage is the union of two people, usually man and woman, as accepted by law. There is Ceremonial Marriage and Common Law Marriage. Presently only a minority of states accept Common Law Marriage. Common Law Marriage is explained in our 10 page educational series on Prenups, Divorce and Asset Protection for $9.95.

Most people view marriage as a private affair of a relationship, however, marriage is actually an entity to protect property. This property is the spouse (yes, you are the property of your mate), the marital gains, the real estate, the children and the wills and estates. With this in mind, the law really does prefer to keep the relationship sacred and rule on marriage from the business perspective. The complication is that the business of marriage involves couples, their families and their children. Now you are aware, for better or for worse, that the business of marriage is the single most important aspect of the union.

Security strengthens relationships. Living with grace and happiness in these times has become an art. The average person in 2007 makes many more decisions on a daily basis then a person did one hundred years ago. Both adults and children are bombarded with decisions that affect living with greater consequences than the decisions in the last century. These decisions, including life, love and business, often depend on the strength of a person's self-esteem and feeling of security. The best marriages and families are harmonious when everyone is functioning with stability, certain of the present and planning for the future.

The concept is simple. You would not drive a car without knowing the rules of the road or being able to read the traffic signs. Marriage, from the business perspective, is the same. Every couple should know the rules of the road before they get in the car. The issues of fairness and equality are much easier to deal with in the beginning of all relationships. As time passes, multiple people are involved, multiple properties, along with wealth accumulation as well as debt accumulation.

There are many ways to achieve security and no particular way is the absolute; in order to determine what is best for you, whether you are taking a walk down the aisle, in a common law marriage, or already hitched, the first step is your understanding of the business aspect concerning “union.”

Business options include:

Pre-marital Agreements or Pre-nuptual Agreements
Post-Nuptial Agreements (already married)
Trusts with provisions for beneficiaries
Combinations of the above with estate planning

The paramount reason for considering any of these is to avoid the courts and the decision by a judge who is hired by society to rule on the business of your relationship. As society changes so does family law and court decisions. Having said that, judges have seen your case before, and they have ruled on it many times. To them, you are somewhat ordinary with a predictable outcome.

So, when you are thinking about the walk down the aisle or civil union, you should seek the education and council that will promote the security and happiness in your relationship; sooner is better than later in the case of marriage.

You can purchase our educational module on Prenups, Divorce and Asset Protection for $9.95 by clicking here.

Until next time,

John

 

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