As you recall from when we last met, the fair maiden Guinevere had taken 60% of King Arthur’s booty and moved to a castle by the lake with Sir Lancelot. Much like a modern day John Bobbitt, the king awoke to find his family jewels missing. The kingdom was abuzz.
Many a knave wondered, “How was this possible? Why would the king allow his family jewels to be exposed in such a fashion?” Despite the warnings of his parents, King Arthur had allowed love or lust to cloud his better judgment, and he did not take the necessary steps to protect his jewels. Don’t make the same mistake. Protect your family jewels!
While not being the most romantic notion, prenuptial agreements do a wonderful job of protecting your family jewels. If you are unfortunate and your marriage does not work out, having a prenuptial agreement in place can predetermine how assets and debts will be classified and divided. Additionally, clauses can be added that invalidate the agreement under certain circumstances, such as infidelity or change the distribution if said behavior occurs.
Additionally, more and more people are entering into post-nuptial agreements or cohabitation agreements. Cohabitation agreements are a fabulous tool to define who is going to pay for what while you are together and to establish that you and your significant other are not common law married. As with prenuptial agreements, there are a number of legal hoops that you must jump through for post-nuptial and cohabitation agreements to be valid and to withstand a challenge in court, so this is not a do it yourself project.
Don’t allow your family jewels to be Bobbitized. Talk to an experienced family lawyer and make sure your family jewels are protected.
