A-1531-07T2
12-12-08
The parties entered into a prenuptial agreement (agreement) prior to their 1981 marriage. In 1998, the Legislature adopted the Uniform Pre-Marital Agreement Act (the Act), N.J.S.A. 37:2-31 to -41. The agreement was governed by pre-Act case law articulated in D'Onofrio v. D'Onofrio, 200 N.J. Super. 361, 366 (App. Div. 1985), and Marschall v. Marschall, 195 N.J. Super. 16 (Ch. Div. 1984). Those pre-Act cases held that prenuptial agreements are valid and enforceable under certain conditions, but subject to modification at the time of enforcement if the spouse sought to be bound by the agreement will suffer a substantial diminution in his standard of living after the divorce.
Here, after lengthy evidentiary hearings, the trial court declared the entire agreement unenforceable and determined that defendant was entitled to seek equitable distribution and alimony. We modified the trial court's conclusion to allow defendant to seek alimony if and when he demonstrates substantially changed circumstances under the standard articulated in Lepis v. Lepis, 83 N.J. 139 (1980). The remainder of the agreement remains in full force and effect.
