Prenuptial deals better than family law system

SENATOR Fergal Browne of Fine Gael is to be commended for raising the question of the status of prenuptial agreements.

Those who get married are presumed to be sane, mature and fully informed as to the implications of the marriage contract.

Consequently, they should be capable of deciding for themselves the terms of their marriage, including the parenting, financial, property and other issues that will arise should they decide to end it at any future date.

The State’s involvement should be confined solely to ensuring the welfare of children.

But whatever about their sanity or maturity, people who marry at present have absolutely no information about the terms of the contract, especially the lethal unseen termination clause which has the potential to destroy their lives and is hidden away in various pieces of legislation.

Prenuptial agreements have the potential to bring about tremendous benefits for men, women, children and society in general, but only if they become mandatory and binding on all parties entering into civil marriage.

One of the main benefits is that they would greatly reduce the massive amount of damaging litigation that currently keeps the family law gravy train rolling along.

Unfortunately, it is for that reason that the vested interests who benefit from the hate-fuelled family law system will ensure that they become totally ineffective.

Justice Minister Michael McDowell’s comment that “the weight judges can give to such agreements must be less than the weight they give to requirements they must consider under law” is a clear indication that his loyalty to his profession will prove decisive in the end.

Instead of reducing this horrific litigation, such a half-hearted approach will merely add another few carriages to the malignant family law gravy train.

Frank McGlynn

34 Pineview Grove

Aylesbury

Tallaght

Dublin 24.