The importance of a prenup - and art of getting one

"I now pronounce you man and ..." Hang on! Is there still time for a prenup?

That's close to how major league slugger Barry Bonds broached the who-should-get-what-if-we-split question when he signed a prenuptial agreement the day before he married his now ex-wife.

His last-minute jitters triggered a California Supreme Court ruling that rendered prenuptial agreements invalid when signed within seven days of a wedding. Fortunately for Bonds, the law went into effect after he and his ex-wife's divorce was finalized, saving him millions of dollars.

Bonds is just one of dozens of celebrities whose prenups have made the headlines. But experts say the agreements are no longer the exclusive preserve of the rich and famous especially in an age when soaring real-estate prices has turned many a humble homeowner into a millionaire.

"Everyone should have a prenup so that when you get divorced you are not surprised at what happens," said Robert J. Naschin, a West Los Angeles attorney who represented Bonds and country singer Buck Owens (whose prenup ended in a court settlement for an undisclosed amount). "Just make sure you do it way in advance.... Without one you have to deal with the subjectivity of a judge."

Call them romance ruiners, wedding crashers or couple killers, it is difficult to avoid the subject of prenups when divorces are so popular. The National Center for Health Statistics estimates that 43percent of all marriages experience disruption in the form of separation or divorce after 15 years of wedlock. At the same time, there are approximately four divorces per 1,000 married people in the U.S.

Of course, under California law, each spouse automatically owns half interest of any property acquired from the date of marriage to separation. And that includes income and debt accrued during a marriage unless a prenup states otherwise.

And perhaps it should, according to Kacy Gott, a principal at Kochis Fitz Wealth Management in San Francisco. Though Gott considers himself a romantic at heart, he believes most if not all of his clients should consider a prenup.

"I like them because they get couples talking about money and far too often people don't talk about money and how it is going to work out," said Gott, who did not get a prenup when he married.

Michelle Sly, 38, from West Hills also did not get a prenup something she would have done in retrospect.

"To me, marriage is an outdated institution that needs a little updating," said Sly, a travel agent now married for 15 years. "I mean look at how many people spend most of their time fighting about money.

" Sly is pro-prenup because she understands the financial kerfuffle that surfaces after more than a decade of marriage.

Not that she is mulling a divorce, but Sly said she thinks men and women need to keep their financial interests closer to heart.

From the Whittier Daily News