📜
Marriage & Cohabitation Contracts
Prenuptial and cohabitation agreements — protecting assets, inheritances, and expectations before and during a relationship.
Plan before you have to.
A marriage contract (prenup) or cohabitation agreement is a domestic contract entered into before or during a relationship. It can govern property, support, and the treatment of specific assets on separation or death.
Common uses
- Protecting a business or professional practice owned before the relationship.
- Preserving an inheritance or family trust for children of a prior relationship.
- Addressing the matrimonial home — particularly where one spouse brought it into the relationship.
- Setting the terms of spousal support (waiver, cap, or duration) in advance.
- Protecting property acquired after separation in a long-term common-law relationship.
Requirements for validity
A domestic contract in Ontario must be in writing, signed, and witnessed. It can be set aside if one party failed to disclose significant assets, did not understand the nature of the contract, or signed under duress. Both parties must have the opportunity to receive Independent Legal Advice — and should take it. Contracts signed without ILA are the ones most often challenged.