An ante-nuptial agreement (commonly referred to as a pre-nuptial agreement or “pre-nup”, according to O.C.G.A. § 19-3-62, is a contract into which a couple enters prior to marriage, which divideshis or her assets in case the couple’s marriage ends in divorce. Many people usually associate pre-nups with the rich and famous or the wealthy, but anyone can obtain a pre-nup in Georgiaregardless of their wealth and assets. Typically, each party will keep the assets that he or she had prior to the marriage and the division of assets is detailed in the pre-nup. One party usuallykeeps all of their money and assets that he or she had prior to the marriage and the other party keeps theirs. It basically says what is mine is mine and what is yours is yours. Also, if the marriage does end in divorce, the pre-nup will detail what (if any) alimony or assets the other spouse is entitled to receive.
The only enforceable clauses in a pre-nup deal with the parties’ assets. Recently, family law attorneys throughout the country have seen a new trend in pre-nups. Couples now want to addhealth-related clauses, such as how much weight his or her spouse can gain during the marriage or when they will have their first child. For instance, a man may want to add a clause that stateshis wife is only allowed to gain a certain number of pounds during their marriage and if she gains any more than the allotted amount, then she will be subject to monetary penalties. Not only areclauses like this unusual (to say the least), but health related clauses are not enforceable in the State of Georgia. The only clauses in pre-nups that are enforceable in Georgia are the onesdealing with money and/or assets of the parties.