Got your Prince Charming…now get a prenup. What Katie and Wills should do next

Nov. 18, 2010 - PRLog -- So finally we get a Royal Wedding to lift the doom and gloom of recession and give us all something else to talk about. Yet in the corridors of power and certainly across the country’s newsdesks, the debate is already raging over the seemingly unromantic notion of a prenup. Are William Windsor and Kate Middleton likely to put their signatures to a document detailing just how their assets should be shared should the royal marriage come unstuck?
The UK is known as the divorce capital of Europe, not something to be particularly proud of.  Especially when you consider there are people who will travel here simply to position themselves for bigger divorce payouts.
Things took a dramatic turn last month when the UK Supreme Court swept aside hundreds of years of legal precedent and found in favour of German Heiress Katrin Radmacher and her prenuptial agreement.  Her French husband, Nicholas Granatino, had challenged the terms of the papers they had signed before the marriage fell apart.  Up to this point British family courts have always relied on the principle that, where possible, everything should be divided equally.  The decision to honour that prenup will change everything and should persuade us all to take a closer look.
As far as anyone knows there has never been a Royal one. Could things have been less painful for Charles and Diana or even Andrew and Sarah if it had all been agreed beforehand? In William and Kate we have a thoroughly modern couple and they probably need a thoroughly modern lawyer to talk them through it.  Veale Wasbrough Vizards (VWV) family law experts, Sally Rushton (Bristol) and Emma Wilkins (London) say
“Yes, it may seem unromantic, but this is the twenty-first century and the legal system is now shifting to keep pace.  Relationships change, some family businesses grow and some fail, children arrive and sometimes even illnesses can alter everything.  It’s sensible and indeed vital to make sure you know what you’re signing up to.”
“A postnuptial agreement (after the marriage or civil ceremony) is an equally important consideration as financial circumstances change.  It’s making sure that you’re always prepared for the possibility that you may not be ‘together forever'. “It’s not a bad thing, it’s not unromantic and you could even argue it truly shows you care.  It’s the grown up, pragmatic and sensible thing to do.”
So when Kate is making that ‘To Do’ list, now her man has finally popped the question, she’d be advised to stick prenup somewhere near the top after choosing the venue and deciding on the cake.  A good lawyer on the guest list certainly wouldn’t go amiss.
VWV has some of the finest family law experts in the West and London.  If you would like more information or a broadcast interview we would be delighted to hear from you.
Emma can be contacted on 0207 665 0847 or at ewilkins@vwv.co.uk. Sally can be contacted on 0117 314 5329 or at srushton@vwv.co.uk.

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Veale Wasbrough Vizards is a full service law firm providing sector focused services nationally in Education & charities, Healthcare, Public Sector and Family Owned Businesses. The firm also offers a dedicated service to Private clients.