Download Utah Postnuptial Agreement Form [PDF]

The Utah postnuptial agreement is a legal document that defines the rights and responsibilities towards the individual and marital property shared between the two spouses.

There is a difference between postnuptial and prenuptial agreements. While a prenup agreement becomes valid from the moment parties get married, a postnup agreement is created once the parties are married.

In other words, the postnuptial agreement determines the rights and obligations of each spouse from the moment they sign the agreement onward. That means that the document can also be used to determine how the parties will divide the property in case of a marriage dissolution or divorce.

Laws and Legal Requirements for a Postnuptial Agreement in Utah

The laws and legal requirements for a postnuptial agreement in Utah are mostly outlined in the provisions of the state law and court decisions. This is due to the fact that Utah hasn’t adopted the Uniform Marital Agreement Act.

One of the most important court cases for determining the legality of a postnuptial agreement in Utah is Peirce v. Peirce (2000).

In this case, the court set a higher level of scrutiny for the postnuptial agreement compared to other types of contracts by stating the following:

“Parties to premarital agreements do not deal with one another at arm's length. [...] Parties to premarital agreements therefore are held to the highest degree of good faith, honesty, and candor in connection with the negotiation and execution of such agreements.”

Signing Requirements for a Postnuptial Agreement in Utah

The state law provides that the Utah postnuptial agreement must be made in written form. Moreover, both parties to the agreement must sign the document.

What state law doesn’t explicitly require is the notarization of the signed postnuptial agreement form. Regardless, the spouses should still consider completing this step since it can additionally confirm the authenticity of the document. This further prevents misunderstandings between the parties and prevents potential fraudulent activities in this regard.

Postnuptial Agreement Enforcement in Utah

The Utah postnuptial agreement form will be considered enforceable if all of the following criteria are met:

Postnuptial Agreement Enforcement Conditions

Both spouses enter the postnuptial agreement voluntarily. This means that there should be no coercion, duress, pressure, or other kind of manipulation of the parties’ free will.
Each party makes a complete and truthful disclosure of their financial status by providing a list of all the assets and liabilities they have acquired before signing the agreement.
Provisions about the property division (if they are included in the agreement) are reasonable and fair for both parties.

What Can a Postnuptial Agreement in Utah Cover?

The postnuptial agreement in Utah can cover any aspect of the parties' financial and nonfinancial relationship during or after the marriage. However, when drafting the postnuptial agreement, the parties should make sure all the provisions of the agreement are in line with state law and public policy.

Here are the most important matters that are included in the Utah postnuptial agreement template:

Provisions in a Postnuptial Agreement

The rights and responsibilities of each party in relation to their individual and marital property.
Rules on how the parties will manage their marital property.
An agreement on how the marital property will be divided in case of marriage dissolution, divorce, death, or any similar event.
Matters connected with spousal support, pensions, insurance, wills, trusts, and more.
Choice of relevant law for the interpretation of the agreement

Postnuptial Agreement in Utah: Validity Criteria

The first validity criterion for the Utah postnuptial agreement is connected with the formality criteria set by the state law. This means that the postnuptial agreement must be in written form to be considered valid.

Moreover, the validity of the postnuptial agreement also depends on the existence of the marriage. This means that the spouses must sign the postnuptial agreement at some point during their marriage for the document to be considered valid. Besides that, the parties can create multiple postnuptial agreements to regulate different aspects of their relationship.