Most people marry without reading anything about marital property laws. And that’s fine if you’re a young couple building your lives together. You probably know that in California, as a community property state, all of your earnings during marriage — and the assets that you buy with those earnings — will be owned fifty-fifty with your spouse.

But if you have assets that are not intended to be community property — such as those owned before you were married, or acquired by inheritance, or gifts to you individually — you may not want those to be considered to be owned by the community. Perhaps you are marrying for the second time and you want certain things to be set aside for your children, or given back to you if something happens to your marriage.

These marital agreements don’t have to come from adversarial thoughts. In my thirty-five years of practicing family law I have seen people to go high-priced attorneys who treat the marital agreements as adversarial matters. They don’t have to be. In mediation you can lovingly and calmly discuss these questions and reach agreement easily. The meeting with the mediator will educate you both regarding your rights and will suggest solutions for these issues. One solution might be to list all common property owned before marriage and agree that it will remain separate.

These agreements are not expensive when compared to their value and your peace of mind.

You’re invited to call for more information.