Florida Prenuptial Agreement Attorney

By Nadia Pazos, Family Law Attorney, Pazos Law Group · Updated August 2026

A well-drafted prenuptial agreement lets you decide, in advance and on your own terms, how property, debt, and support will be handled if a Florida marriage ends. Pazos Law Group drafts, reviews, and enforces prenups under Fla. Stat. § 61.079 for clients across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties — in English and Spanish. Whether you need a Florida prenup lawyer to draft a new agreement or to review one your fiancé(e) presented, we make the process clear and low-stress.

Who a Florida Prenup Is For

A prenuptial agreement is no longer just for the wealthy. Today, couples of every income level use one to begin marriage with a clear, shared financial plan. Wherever you fall below, the goal is the same — certainty the two of you agree on, instead of Florida’s default rules under Fla. Stat. § 61.075 deciding for you.

What a Prenuptial Agreement Is — and Why People Use One

A prenuptial agreement — also called a “prenup” or premarital agreement — is a written contract entered into by two people before they marry. Under Florida’s Uniform Premarital Agreement Act, codified at Fla. Stat. § 61.079, the agreement becomes effective upon the marriage. It allows the couple to define their own financial rules rather than relying entirely on Florida’s default equitable-distribution and alimony statutes if the marriage later ends in divorce or death.

Prenups are not only for the wealthy. They are practical planning tools whenever one or both partners bring meaningful assets, obligations, or expectations into a marriage. Common reasons Florida couples ask us to prepare a prenup include:

• Asset protection. Keeping premarital savings, real estate, retirement accounts, and investments classified as separate, non-marital property.
• Business owners and professionals. Shielding a company, professional practice, partnership interest, or future earning capacity from division or valuation disputes in a divorce.
• Second marriages. Protecting assets accumulated before the new marriage and preserving arrangements made after a prior divorce.
• Blended families. Making sure children from a prior relationship inherit as intended and that a surviving spouse’s rights are clearly defined.
• Inheritances and family wealth. Confirming that gifts, inheritances, and family-business interests stay with the spouse who received them.
• Debt clarity. Establishing that student loans, business debt, or credit obligations one party brings in remain that party’s responsibility.

A prenup also reduces uncertainty. Instead of leaving critical questions to be litigated years later under stress, the couple sets clear, enforceable expectations at the outset. That predictability is often the single most valuable feature of a well-prepared agreement.

The 5 Requirements to Make a Florida Prenup Enforceable

Florida courts will enforce a prenuptial agreement that is properly prepared, but a poorly drafted one can be set aside at exactly the moment it matters most. Based on § 61.079 and how Florida courts apply it, a Florida prenup must:

1. Be in writing. Oral premarital agreements are not enforceable.
2. Be signed by both parties. Under § 61.079(3) the agreement is enforceable without consideration other than the marriage itself.
3. Be entered into voluntarily, without duress or coercion.
4. Be entered into with fair financial disclosure — or with a valid written waiver of disclosure.
5. Not be unconscionable at the time of execution.

These five points are the practical core. The statute frames the flip side in § 61.079(7)(a): an agreement is not enforceable if the party challenging it proves that (1) it was not executed voluntarily; (2) it was the product of fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching; or (3) it was unconscionable when executed and, before signing, that party was not provided a fair and reasonable disclosure of the other party’s finances, did not expressly waive disclosure in writing, and could not reasonably have had adequate knowledge of those finances. Whether an agreement is unconscionable is decided by the court as a matter of law under § 61.079(7)(c). For a plain-language walk-through, see our guide to Fla. Stat. § 61.079.

What Does § 61.079(3) Actually Require to Form a Valid Prenup?

Two things, and nothing else. Section 61.079(3) requires an agreement “in writing and signed by both parties,” and provides that it “is enforceable without consideration other than the marriage itself.” The promise to marry is the consideration, so no payment or transfer of property is needed to make the document binding. Section 61.079(1) supplies the short title — the Uniform Premarital Agreement Act, which Florida enacted in 2007 — and § 61.079(2)(a) fixes the outer boundary of the Act: it reaches only an agreement “made in contemplation of marriage.”

The date of signature and the date of effect are different things. Under § 61.079(5) the agreement “becomes effective upon marriage of the parties,” so a signed prenup followed by a cancelled wedding never operates at all. If the marriage is later determined to be void, § 61.079(8) enforces the agreement only to the extent necessary to avoid an inequitable result. Later changes take the same form as the original: § 61.079(6) allows amendment or revocation after the wedding “only by a written agreement signed by the parties,” and that amendment is likewise enforceable without separate consideration.

Does a Florida Prenup Have to Be Notarized or Witnessed?

No. Neither a notary nor a subscribing witness appears anywhere in § 61.079(3), and no Florida court will void an agreement for the absence of either. Most drafters notarize anyway, because a notarial certificate makes the signature itself hard to dispute and closes off one line of attack under § 61.079(7)(a)1. Independent counsel for each spouse serves the same defensive function and is also not required by the statute.

How Is a Florida Prenup Challenged Under § 61.079(7)(a)?

Only by the spouse resisting enforcement, and only on the three grounds the subsection lists. Section 61.079(7)(a) applies where “the party against whom enforcement is sought proves” that:

1. § 61.079(7)(a)1. — that party “did not execute the agreement voluntarily.”
2. § 61.079(7)(a)2. — the agreement “was the product of fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching.”
3. § 61.079(7)(a)3. — the agreement “was unconscionable when it was executed” and all three of subparagraphs a., b., and c. are met: no “fair and reasonable disclosure of the property or financial obligations of the other party,” no voluntary written waiver of that disclosure, and no adequate knowledge of those finances.

The conjunction is decisive. Because subparagraphs a., b., and c. of § 61.079(7)(a)3. are joined by “and,” a spouse who was handed a complete disclosure schedule cannot undo the agreement merely by showing the terms were lopsided. Whether the bargain is unconscionable at all “shall be decided by the court as a matter of law” under § 61.079(7)(c) — a question for the judge, not for a jury or an expert. Section 61.079(9) tolls any limitations period on a claim arising under the agreement during the marriage while leaving equitable defenses such as laches and estoppel available. The official text is published by the Florida Legislature at leg.state.fl.us.

What a Prenup Can Cover

Under § 61.079(4)(a), a Florida premarital agreement can address a wide range of financial and property matters, including:

Which Subjects Does § 61.079(4)(a) Let a Couple Contract About?

Eight, numbered in the statute, with the last one written broadly on purpose:

1. Rights and obligations in any property, “whenever and wherever acquired or located” (§ 61.079(4)(a)1.).
2. The right to buy, sell, use, transfer, or otherwise manage and control property (§ 61.079(4)(a)2.).
3. Disposition of property on separation, dissolution of marriage, death, or the occurrence or nonoccurrence of any other event (§ 61.079(4)(a)3.).
4. Establishing, modifying, waiving, or eliminating spousal support (§ 61.079(4)(a)4.).
5. Making a will, trust, or other arrangement to carry out the agreement (§ 61.079(4)(a)5.).
6. Ownership and disposition of the death benefit under a life insurance policy (§ 61.079(4)(a)6.).
7. The choice of law governing the agreement (§ 61.079(4)(a)7.).
8. Any other lawful matter, including personal rights and obligations, short of public policy or a statute imposing a criminal penalty (§ 61.079(4)(a)8.).

The reach of those eight subjects comes from the definition rather than the list. Section 61.079(2)(b) defines property to include present and future, vested and contingent, legal and equitable interests in real or personal property, and it reaches income and earnings that are both active and passive. That is why a single Florida instrument can classify founder’s equity, unvested restricted stock, the goodwill of a professional practice, a foreign account, and the future appreciation on all of it. Couples who plan to leave the state usually pair § 61.079(4)(a)1. with a § 61.079(4)(a)7. choice-of-law clause naming Florida.

What Can a Florida Prenup Never Waive (§ 61.079(4)(b))?

One subject is carved out of the statute entirely. Section 61.079(4)(b) reads: “The right of a child to support may not be adversely affected by a premarital agreement.” A prenup therefore cannot fix a support figure, cannot waive support, and cannot lock in a parenting plan. The amount is produced by the guidelines schedule in § 61.30 from each parent’s net income and the number of overnights, both of which the court finds at the time. Time-sharing is governed by § 61.13, and since 1 July 2023 § 61.13(2)(c)1. directs the court to begin from a rebuttable presumption that equal time-sharing is in the best interests of the child.

Two further guardrails constrain the adult terms. Under § 61.079(7)(b), if a support provision would leave one spouse eligible for public assistance at separation or divorce, a court may order support notwithstanding the agreement. And § 61.079(4)(a)8. withholds effect from any term that violates the public policy of this state or a law imposing a criminal penalty.

What Happens in Florida If You Do Not Have a Prenup?

The statutes decide instead of the couple. Under § 61.075(6)(b), assets owned before the wedding and assets received during the marriage by gift, bequest, devise, or descent are nonmarital — but that classification is not self-executing. Section 61.075(6)(a)1.b. makes the enhancement in value of a nonmarital asset marital to the extent it results from the marital labor or marital funds of either spouse, which is how a premarital business, rental property, or brokerage account becomes partly divisible. Kaaa v. Kaaa, 58 So. 3d 867 (Fla. 2010), is the controlling authority on passive appreciation of a nonmarital home encumbered by a mortgage that marital money paid down.

Support follows the same pattern. Absent an agreement, alimony is set under § 61.08, which the Legislature rewrote in 2023 to eliminate permanent alimony and tie durational awards to the length of the marriage. An agreement drafted under § 61.079(4)(a)4. displaces that framework; without one, the parties litigate need, ability to pay, and duration years after the facts that created them. Our Florida marital asset division calculator models the § 61.075 default and the Florida alimony calculator models the § 61.08 one.

To see this applied to your own property before you decide, our interactive Florida assets-without-a-prenup tool classifies a pre-marital business, equity, home, retirement account, inheritance and savings under each subsection of § 61.075(6) and shows exactly where § 61.075(6)(a)1.b. would convert growth into a marital asset. It runs entirely in your browser and produces no dollar figures.

Did the 2023 Alimony Reform Change What a Prenup Can Waive?

No — it changed what is being waived. Section 61.079(4)(a)4. has always authorized the establishment, modification, waiver, or elimination of spousal support, and the 2023 amendments to § 61.08 did not narrow that authority. What moved is the baseline: with permanent alimony gone, the default a waiver now displaces is a shorter, formula-bounded award. The public-assistance floor in § 61.079(7)(b) is unchanged and still overrides any waiver, however the parties word it.

Financial Disclosure and Independent Counsel

Two best practices do more than anything else to keep a prenup enforceable, even though the statute does not strictly require either one.

Fair financial disclosure. Each party should exchange a complete, written schedule of assets, debts, income, and interests, attached as exhibits to the agreement. When disclosure is full and documented, a later claim of “I didn’t know what I was giving up” is far harder to sustain. If a party chooses to waive disclosure, that waiver must be express and in writing to satisfy § 61.079(7)(a).

Independent counsel. Florida law does not require each spouse to have a separate lawyer, but separate representation is the strongest available evidence that both parties signed voluntarily and understood the agreement. When one side has counsel and the other does not, the risk of a later voluntariness or overreaching challenge rises. We routinely encourage the other party to obtain their own attorney precisely because it makes the finished agreement more durable.

Drafting a Prenup vs. Reviewing One You Were Given

Prenup work comes in two forms, and Pazos Law Group handles both.

Drafting. If you are the party initiating the agreement, we build it from your goals up: identifying and classifying assets, structuring property and support terms, preparing disclosure schedules, and drafting clean, specific language that anticipates foreseeable contingencies. Careful drafting is what makes an agreement both fair on its face and defensible later.

Reviewing. If your fiancé presented you with a proposed agreement, do not sign it without independent review. We explain exactly what you would be giving up, flag one-sided or unconscionable terms, verify that disclosure is adequate, and negotiate revisions before anything is signed. A focused review often surfaces issues that would otherwise surface only in a divorce.

Timing: Start Well Before the Wedding

There is no statutory minimum waiting period, but timing is one of the factors a court weighs when deciding whether an agreement was signed voluntarily. An agreement negotiated over several weeks, with time for each party to review it with independent counsel, supports enforceability. An agreement pushed across the table the night before the ceremony — when one party feels they cannot say no — invites a duress or overreaching challenge under § 61.079(7)(a). As a practical rule, begin the conversation as early as possible and aim to have the agreement signed well before the wedding, not in its final days. Amending or revoking a prenup later is possible, but only by a written agreement signed by both parties under § 61.079(6).

How Much Does a Prenuptial Agreement Cost in Florida?

Nothing is paid to a clerk. A premarital agreement is a private contract; it is not recorded, and it reaches a courthouse only if someone later contests it under § 61.079(7)(a). The expense is attorney time, and the figure varies by complexity. A straightforward agreement between two salaried people is generally quoted in the low four figures; an agreement covering a closely held business, trust interests, foreign property, or equity compensation more often falls in the mid four figures and can run higher. Because each spouse should have separate counsel, a Florida couple normally pays for two engagements. No firm can responsibly quote a number before reviewing the assets.

The cost drivers are predictable: the size of the disclosure schedule that § 61.079(7)(a)3.a. makes practically necessary, whether a business or professional practice needs a valuation, and how many drafts the parties exchange. Compare the litigated alternative — a petition for dissolution of marriage carries a $409.00 filing fee under the Miami-Dade Clerk’s family fee schedule, and the valuations, depositions, and hearings that follow a contested § 61.075 case are additional. Filing fees are set county by county, so the $409.00 figure is Miami-Dade’s and not the whole state’s. Our Florida prenup checklist and cost guide walks through the same variables in detail.

How a Florida Prenup Lawyer Helps

Our family-law practice focuses on the financial architecture of marriage and divorce, which is exactly what a prenup governs. We help clients:

• Clarify goals — asset protection, business continuity, estate planning, or support terms — and translate them into enforceable provisions.
• Prepare complete financial disclosure schedules that hold up to scrutiny.
• Draft or review agreements with clear definitions and carefully structured property and support terms.
• Coordinate with the other party’s counsel and negotiate revisions.
• Advise on how a prenup interacts with equitable distribution — you can model outcomes with our Florida Marital Asset Division Calculator.
• Enforce or challenge existing agreements when a marriage ends.

We work in English and Spanish and offer a confidential consultation to discuss your situation and the right approach. Every engagement is different, and the enforceability of any agreement depends on its specific facts and drafting — there are no guaranteed outcomes, but sound preparation meaningfully improves the odds that an agreement will hold.

Already Married? What Changes After the Wedding

Section 61.079(2)(a) limits the Act to an agreement “made in contemplation of marriage,” so § 61.079 does not apply at all to a document signed after the ceremony. A Florida postnuptial agreement is governed instead by Casto v. Casto, 508 So. 2d 330 (Fla. 1987), under which a marital agreement may be set aside for fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching, or where it is unreasonable and was signed without adequate knowledge of the other spouse’s finances. The three grounds in § 61.079(7)(a) and the Casto standard overlap, but they are not the same test, and the difference frequently decides whether a challenge is worth bringing. See our Florida postnuptial agreement attorney page.

How the Prenup Process Works

A prenup should feel calm and collaborative, not adversarial. Our process is built to be clear and low-stress, and most couples complete it comfortably in about two to three weeks when they begin early.

Because Florida courts weigh whether an agreement was signed voluntarily and without time pressure under Fla. Stat. § 61.079, starting well before the wedding is the single best thing you can do to keep your prenup strong. Not sure where to begin? Take the 60-second prenup quiz to see what yours should protect, or download our free Modern Couple’s Guide to a Florida Prenup.

Does a Prenup Make a Florida Divorce Faster?

Usually, because it removes the issues that consume the calendar. The statutory clock is short to begin with. Section 61.021 requires that “one of the parties to the marriage must reside 6 months in the state before the filing of the petition,” and § 61.052 supplies the no-fault ground — a finding that the marriage is irretrievably broken. Section 61.19 then bars entry of a final judgment of dissolution until at least 20 days have elapsed from the filing of the original petition, unless the court makes a showing-of-injustice finding.

What actually lengthens a case is disagreement about classification and support, and most of the elapsed time goes to mediation. Section 61.183 authorizes referral of contested family matters to mediation, § 44.102 governs court-ordered mediation generally, and § 44.405 makes mediation communications confidential and privileged subject to the exceptions listed in that section. A prenup settles the § 61.075 and § 61.08 questions before any of that begins, leaving the court only what § 61.079(4)(b) reserves to it. Florida’s approved family law forms and self-help material are published at flcourts.gov.

Prenup Attorneys by City

Fla. Stat. § 61.079 applies identically in all 67 Florida counties, but the clerk, the filing fee, and the local court practice differ. Pazos Law Group serves clients across Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties — these 39 pages cover prenuptial agreements community by community:

Founder or equity holder? Startup equity raises issues a standard prenup does not address — appreciation from your own work, pre-Series A valuation, and corporate restructurings. See prenups for startup founders and equity owners.

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Fla. Stat. § 61.079 Subsection by Subsection

A statewide reference for Florida couples, and a checklist for anyone reviewing an agreement someone else drafted:

Three sections outside § 61.079 do most of the remaining work in a Florida marriage: § 61.075 classifies and divides property, § 61.08 sets alimony, and § 61.30 calculates child support. A prenup can displace the first two and cannot touch the third.

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The information on this page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Outcomes and the enforceability of any prenuptial or postnuptial agreement depend on the specific facts, drafting, and circumstances of each case, and no particular result is guaranteed. Reading or sharing this content, or using this website, does not create an attorney-client relationship with Pazos Law Group. Florida law and the application of statutes change over time; please consult a licensed Florida attorney about your specific situation.