Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is an International Prenup?
A: Any agreement made in contemplation of marriage between couples that are internationally connected is an international prenup.
Q. What is so special about an International Prenup?
A. They require special care because they may need to be effective under the law of different countries and over assets that are located around the world.
Q. You’re admitted to practice law in New York. How can you work in other jurisdictions?
A. We bring in appropriate local counsel in selected jurisdictions relevant to the issues that the clients have raised or should have raised.
Q. What’s so challenging about international prenups?
A. The laws and practices of family law, including the effect of prenuptial agreements, vary enormously from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. For example, the effect of choice of law provisions, choice of court provisions and spousal maintenance restrictions can be quite different in different countries. The role of the courts will vary from state to state within the United States and from country to country around the world.
Q. Can’t I just use my local lawyer?
A. You can do so but your local lawyer will likely not consider the legal requirements of other jurisdictions or the cultural and customary norms of such jurisdictions. You need a lawyer who is prepared to look beyond his or her own borders.
Q. Do you guarantee that your prenups are bulletproof?
A. No. Any lawyer who did that would be extremely foolish, since judges exercise an oversight responsibility over all matrimonial cases. What we do is that we seek to enhance your chances that your prenup will be enforced in the jurisdictions that you ask us to consider.
Q. What kind of international experience do you have?
A. I have taught law in three countries, England, Canada and the United States; I have children of triple nationalities; I have myself been divorced overseas; I have lectured on international family law in England, Japan, New Zealand and Spain; I have done business in Japan, most of Western Europe, Thailand, Israel, Brazil, Mexico, Australia, Japan and Russia; I have lived in England, Japan, Canada and the United States; and I have presented expert testimony in cases in Australia, Canada and England. I have represented clients who have been located in jurisdictions throughout most of the world.
Q: What is an International Prenup?
A: Any agreement made in contemplation of marriage between couples that are internationally connected is an international prenup.
Q. What is so special about an International Prenup?
A. They require special care because they may need to be effective under the law of different countries and over assets that are located around the world.
Q. You’re admitted to practice law in New York. How can you work in other jurisdictions?
A. We bring in appropriate local counsel in selected jurisdictions relevant to the issues that the clients have raised or should have raised.
Q. What’s so challenging about international prenups?
A. The laws and practices of family law, including the effect of prenuptial agreements, vary enormously from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. For example, the effect of choice of law provisions, choice of court provisions and spousal maintenance restrictions can be quite different in different countries. The role of the courts will vary from state to state within the United States and from country to country around the world.
Q. Can’t I just use my local lawyer?
A. You can do so but your local lawyer will likely not consider the legal requirements of other jurisdictions or the cultural and customary norms of such jurisdictions. You need a lawyer who is prepared to look beyond his or her own borders.
Q. Do you guarantee that your prenups are bulletproof?
A. No. Any lawyer who did that would be extremely foolish, since judges exercise an oversight responsibility over all matrimonial cases. What we do is that we seek to enhance your chances that your prenup will be enforced in the jurisdictions that you ask us to consider.
Q. What kind of international experience do you have?
A. I have taught law in three countries, England, Canada and the United States; I have children of triple nationalities; I have myself been divorced overseas; I have lectured on international family law in England, Japan, New Zealand and Spain; I have done business in Japan, most of Western Europe, Thailand, Israel, Brazil, Mexico, Australia, Japan and Russia; I have lived in England, Japan, Canada and the United States; and I have presented expert testimony in cases in Australia, Canada and England. I have represented clients who have been located in jurisdictions throughout most of the world.
