Family · Prenuptial agreement
Prenuptial Agreement Requirements in Florida
What makes a prenuptial agreement valid and enforceable in Florida: the writing and signature, the voluntariness rule, the financial disclosure each side must give, and what gets a prenup thrown out. Cited to the statute.
What makes a prenuptial agreement valid in Florida
The writing and signature, voluntariness, and financial disclosure a court looks for before it will enforce a prenup.
Prenuptial agreement enforceability turns on the specific facts and on evolving case law, and Florida courts scrutinize these agreements closely. Confirm the current text of Florida Statute 61.079 and recent decisions before relying on this.
| What makes a prenup valid | What it means |
|---|---|
| In writing and signed by both | Under Florida Statute 61.079, a premarital agreement must be in writing and signed by both parties. It is enforceable without any consideration other than the marriage itself, so an oral prenup does not qualify. |
| Signed voluntarily | The agreement must be executed voluntarily. If the challenging party proves it was not signed voluntarily, the agreement is not enforceable. |
| Free of fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching | The agreement cannot be the product of fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching. Pressuring a party to sign, or hiding key facts, can make it unenforceable. |
| Fair financial disclosure or a written waiver | Before signing, each party should receive a fair and reasonable disclosure of the other’s property and financial obligations, or voluntarily and expressly waive that disclosure in writing, or already have adequate knowledge of the other’s finances. |
| What makes a prenup unenforceable | What it means |
|---|---|
| Signed involuntarily | If the party against whom enforcement is sought proves the agreement was not signed voluntarily, it is not enforceable. Being rushed with no time to review can support an involuntariness claim. |
| Fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching | A premarital agreement that was the product of fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching is unenforceable. This is a separate ground from unconscionability under Florida law. |
| Unconscionable when signed with no disclosure or waiver | The agreement is unenforceable if it was unconscionable when executed and the challenging party was not given a fair disclosure, did not waive disclosure in writing, and could not reasonably have known the other party’s finances. |
| Terms that adversely affect child support | Under section 61.079, a premarital agreement may not adversely affect a child’s right to support. Child support and custody are decided by the court and cannot be fixed in advance by the parents. |
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps to sign a prenup that will hold up in Florida. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Put it in writing well before the wedding
Have the agreement drafted in writing and given to the other party with enough time to read and consider it. Signing on the eve of the wedding invites an involuntariness or overreaching challenge.
- Exchange full financial disclosure
Both people should exchange a complete and honest list of assets, debts, and income. Keep a record of what was disclosed, or of any written waiver, so the agreement can survive a later challenge.
- Each person should use independent counsel
Florida does not require it, but each party using a separate lawyer helps show the agreement was voluntary and free of overreaching, and reduces the chance a court sets it aside.
A prenuptial agreement decides property and support if a marriage ends, and a court will scrutinize how it was signed. A licensed family-law attorney can draft or review one; the state bar can refer you to one.
→ The Florida Bar, Lawyer Referral ServiceThis is general legal information, not legal advice. Enforceability turns on the exact statute, the case law, and how the agreement was signed, so confirm the current requirements against the statute and talk to a lawyer.
What couples in Florida get wrong about prenups
Florida enforces premarital agreements under its Uniform Premarital Agreement Act, codified at Florida Statute 61.079. The agreement must be in writing and signed by both parties, and it is enforceable without any consideration beyond the marriage itself. Under the statute, the agreement is not enforceable if the party challenging it proves any of three things: that the party did not sign voluntarily; that the agreement was the product of fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching; or that the agreement was unconscionable when it was executed and, before signing, the party was not given a fair and reasonable disclosure of the other party’s property and finances, did not waive that disclosure in writing, and could not reasonably have known the other party’s finances. Florida separates the fraud and overreaching ground from unconscionability, which gives a challenger more than one way to attack a rushed or one-sided agreement. One firm limit applies to everyone: a premarital agreement cannot adversely affect a child’s right to support, so child support and custody stay with the court. This is legal information, not legal advice.
Common questions
Does a prenuptial agreement have to be notarized in Florida?
Florida Statute 61.079 requires the agreement to be in writing and signed by both parties. Notarization is not required by the statute, though many couples notarize the document and use separate lawyers to help show it was signed voluntarily.
Can a Florida prenup decide child support or custody?
No. The statute says a child’s right to support cannot be adversely affected by a premarital agreement. Child support and custody are decided by the court based on the child’s best interest, not fixed in advance by the parents.
What makes a prenuptial agreement unenforceable in Florida?
It can be thrown out if the challenger proves it was signed involuntarily, was the product of fraud, duress, coercion, or overreaching, or was unconscionable when signed and there was no fair disclosure and no written waiver of disclosure.
Do both people need their own lawyer for a Florida prenup?
Florida does not require separate lawyers, but each party using independent counsel helps show the agreement was voluntary and free of overreaching, which makes it harder to challenge later.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.