Parties who have not drafted a prenuptial agreement may, at some point of their marriage decide to make an agreement about spousal support, distribution of separate property and property acquired during the marriage. If the parties later divorce, that postnuptial agreement may or may not be enforced by the court.
Under Michigan law, a trial court might later decide that a postnuptial agreement made by the parties during their marriage is not enforceable in a later divorce action. Lawyers and laypersons contemplating the drafting of a postnuptial agreement will want to review and be guided by three important cases decided by the Michigan Court of Appeal. Careful drafting and careful thought can make or break the deal.
In three much later cases involving enforceability of a postnup, the COA was guided by an earlier court of appeal decision regarding enforceability of a prenuptial agreement. That earlier case holding a prenup to be void as "against public policy" because it tended to encourage divorce is Rinvelt v Rinvelt, 190 Mich App 372, 475 NW2d 478 (1991).
Three cases have been decided that affect postnuptial agreements in the way that Rinvelt v Rinvelt, 190 Mich App 372, 475 NW2d 478 (1991), affects prenuptial agreements.
These cases demonstrate that timing, circumstances, and the specific facts of each case can be make the difference between an agreement being enforced or held to be void. As with every family law case, the specifics of each case will likely govern the trial court's decision. These cases demonstrate that enforceability hinges upon when a postnuptial agreement is entered into, whether it promotes divorce, and whether it is equitable.
Prior to drafting or entering into a postnuptial agreement, the careful lawyer of layperson will want to review the following cases:
Lentz v Lentz, 271 Mich App 465, 721 NW2d 861 (2006) Download Lentz_v_Lentz Postnup
Wright v Wright, 279 Mich App 291, 761 NW2d 443 (2008) Download Wright_v_Wright Postnup
Hodge v Parks, 303 Mich App 552, 844 NW2d 189 (2014). Download Hodge_v._Parks
You will want to review that earlier court of appeal decision regarding enforceability of a prenuptial agreement resulted in a COA decision that a prenuptial agreement that tended to encourage divorce was unenforceable as a matter of public policy. See Rinvelt v Rinvelt, 190 Mich App 372, 475 NW2d 478 (1991). Review the facts to see if they are similar to the facts of the case at hand. Download Rinvelt_v_Rinvelt
