Opinion ID: 1781943
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Prenuptial Agreements

Text: As between spouses, certain contracts or agreements often dictate whether assets acquired prior to or during the marriage are considered marital or separate property. The author of the majority opinion previously has written that [a] property settlement is a contractual agreement governed by the law of contracts and recognized the freedom to contract and the right of sui juris married adults to enter into a valid and binding agreement regarding their property. Grier v. Grier, 616 So.2d 337 (Miss. 1993) (Prather, J., dissenting). Indeed, this Court long has recognized that prenuptial agreements are like any other contract, and when fairly made, are favored by the courts. Estate of Hensley v. Estate of Hensley, 524 So.2d 325, 327 (Miss. 1988); Stevenson v. Renardet, 83 Miss. 392, 35 So. 576 (1904); Gorin v. Gorin, 38 Miss. 205 (1859). Yet, the existence of a prenuptial agreement or other written property agreement is not even recognized as a factor to consider in dividing marital assets. Further, the majority provides no safeguards for the validity of such contract. Thus, property brought to the marriage by one spouse with the intent, by prenuptial agreement, to remain separate property or to be divided in a particular manner upon divorce, may be deemed marital property, regardless of contrary contractual terms, where the chancellor finds that equitable factors so dictate. In contrast, the Wisconsin statute, for example, provides a statutory safeguard by considering: Any written agreement made by the parties before or during the marriage concerning any arrangement for property distribution; such agreements shall be binding upon the court except that no such agreement shall be binding where the terms of the agreement are inequitable as to either party. The court shall presume any such agreement to be equitable as to both parties. Wis. Stat. Ann. § 767.255(11) (quoted in LaRue v. LaRue, 172 W. Va. 158, 304 S.Ed.2d 312, 316 n. 3 (1983) (emphasis added). Such statutory provisions go a long way to help safeguard the freedom to contract, without which, the parties themselves may see the evisceration of prenuptial contracts entered into in good faith, as well as of those assets the agreements were intended to protect.