Making a prenuptial agreement before you get married can take away some of the financial worry about what will happen to your assets and property if your marriage does not work out.

In this series of blogs, Susan Davies, head of family law at Ansons Solicitors in Lichfield and Cannock, Staffordshire, gives her top 12 tips for what to include in your prenuptial agreement:

Top tip no.2 – Ring-fence your business ownership

Building a business can be a lifetime’s work and a culmination of your dreams and ambitions. If you have spent many years before your marriage growing your business, or you have acquired a business through family succession, you may naturally be concerned about losing a share of it through divorce.

Making a prenuptial agreement will give you the opportunity to discuss whether to ring-fence your business. If you are going to give your spouse an interest in the business you can set out how shares will be divided. Our corporate law team can give you advice on safeguarding your business interests.

Your spouse may also be your business partner, company secretary or an employee. If so, their may be employment law issues to consider and you will need to consider whether you will continue to work together if the marriage ends or plan an exit strategy.

Prenuptial agreements are being increasingly recognised by the court as a good reflection of a couple’s intentions towards each other if they separate. You must both take independent legal advice, give full disclosure of your financial assets and neither of you must be under any duress before signing the agreement. The agreement must also be ‘fair’.

For further advice, please contact Susan Davies in the family law team, on 01543 267 190 or sdavies@ansonsllp.com. Ansons Solicitors has offices in Cannock and Lichfield, Staffordshire.