THE BERNARDS-RIDGE CONNECTION PAGE 17 SEPT/OCT/NOV 2025 theconnectionsnj.com renuptial agreements are signed for a reason. They limit a spouse’s claims to their partner’s premarital assets. Such agreements should hold up in court as long as all of the statutory requirements are met. That doesn’t stop litigants whose entitlements are limited, as well as their attorneys, from attacking them to try to get more money. It would be nice if the courts quickly dispatched such efforts to set these agreements aside, but that is not always the case. In addition to trying to invalidate the prenuptial agreement outright, a common “Hail Mary” tactic is to quibble about the language. This was the issue recently in the case of In the Matter of the Estate of Lynda Nathanson Sutton, deceased, a recent, unreported, Appellate Division decision. It should come as no surprise that the issue of the enforceability of a prenuptial agreement came out of estate litigation. In many cases, prenuptial agreements address not only what happens in a divorce, but also in the case of the death of a spouse. In this dispute, the parties were married in 1992 and signed a prenuptial agreement protecting the wife’s premarital assets. The marriage was less than ideal, and the parties lived separately for long periods of time. The evidence at trial showed that the decedent did not seek a divorce because of her faith and often stated her desire that her husband not inherit any part of her estate, particularly the property that she purchased prior to the marriage. The trial court found that the premarital agreement was enforceable. The husband’s first defense was that he never signed the prenuptial agreement and was unaware of its existence. As in most cases, this was a losing argument. The trial court found that he was not credible and that his testimony was “contradicted by multiple fact witnesses.” The trial court also found that his wife’s will disinheriting her husband was both self-proving and valid. The husband also claimed that the prenuptial agreement was invalid because he did not explicitly waive the “elective share.” The “elective share” is the default portion of a spouse’s estate to which the surviving spouse is generally entitled. In New Jersey, absent a prenuptial agreement, this is one-third. This argument was rejected by both the trial court and the Appellate Division. The Court noted that the prenuptial agreement provided that “[u]pon the death of either party, non-distributable property shall remain separate to be willed freely.” As to the husband’s argument that he did not specifically waive his right to the elective share, the Appellate Division disagreed and noted that: “The Agreement explicitly waives ‘any and all right[s]’ one party has as a result of the marital relationship including, but not limited to, equitable distribution of property . . . or other similar statutory scheme for the division of marital property.” The takeaway here is that when a prenuptial agreement says, “waiving all rights,” it means waiving all rights. For more information regarding divorce in New Jersey, contact Morristown-based Fox Rothschild Family Law attorneys Eric S. Solotoff at esolotoff@foxrothschild.com or (973) 994-7501 or Jessica Diamond Lia at jlia@foxrothschild.com or (973) 994-7517. LAWYER’SVIEW When a Prenuptial Agreement Says ‘Waiving All Rights’ It Means Waiving All Rights By Eric S. Solotoff and Jessica Diamond Lia - - - - It should come as no surprise that the issue of the enforceability of a prenuptial agreement came out of estate litigation. P Morristown | Princeton | Atlantic City Handling family law matters throughout New Jersey When It’s Your Move High-net-worth divorce is complicated. Division of assets, complex income, custody. The rules can seem tilted against you. Our attorneys have the legal know-how and national firm resources it takes to design a successful strategy.* Dedicated. Driven. Committed to helping you reach your goals. Eric Solotoff esolotoff@foxrothschild.com 973.994.7501 Jessica Diamond Lia jlia@foxrothschild.com 973.994.7517 *Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.
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