Financial Disclosures in Prenups:
The Legal, Personal, and Strategic Considerations

By Alyssa Rower | Published November 8, 2024 | New York Law Journal

A common legal misconception is that parties are required to disclose their finances before entering into a prenuptial agreement (“prenup”). Although some states do require financial disclosure, New York is not one of them. In fact, all New York law requires is that a prenup be (1) in writing, (2) subscribed by the parties, and 3) acknowledged or proven in the manner required to entitle a deed to be recorded. N.Y. Dom. Rel. Law §236(B)(3). Any prenup that meets these basic requirements, even if no financial disclosure has occurred, is presumptively enforceable.

From a legal perspective, then, parties to a New York prenup are not obligated to engage in finan- cial disclosure. But prenups should be approached from more than just a legal perspective. A prenup (hopefully) marks the start of a lifelong partner- ship, and the tone and tenor of negotiations must be carefully calibrated.

In this article, we will consider the different “lev- els” of financial disclosure through various lenses: legal enforceability, psychological and emotional well-being, and negotiation considerations. In a vacuum, more disclosure is better. However, the proper level of disclosure depends on the wants, needs, and bespoke circumstances of the client.