HF 3455

as introduced - 82nd Legislature (2001 - 2002) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to family law; enacting the Marital Agreement 
  1.3             Act; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota 
  1.4             Statutes, chapter 519; repealing Minnesota Statutes 
  1.5             2000, section 519.11. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [519.12] [MARITAL AGREEMENTS.] 
  1.8      Subdivision 1.  [DEFINITIONS.] The definitions in this 
  1.9   subdivision apply to this section. 
  1.10     (a) "Marital agreement" means: 
  1.11     (1) an agreement between prospective spouses made in 
  1.12  contemplation of marriage that is effective upon their marriage; 
  1.13  and 
  1.14     (2) an agreement between spouses. 
  1.15     (b) "Property" means an interest, present or future, legal 
  1.16  or equitable, vested or contingent, in property whether real, 
  1.17  personal, or mixed, including income, earnings, and appreciation 
  1.18  in value of property. 
  1.19     Subd. 2.  [FORMALITIES.] A marital agreement must be in 
  1.20  writing, executed in the presence of two witnesses, and signed 
  1.21  and acknowledged by both parties.  A marital agreement is 
  1.22  enforceable without consideration. 
  1.23     Subd. 3.  [CONTENT.] Parties to a marital agreement may 
  1.24  contract only with respect to: 
  1.25     (1) the rights and obligations of each of the parties in 
  2.1   any property, however titled and wherever located, acquired 
  2.2   before, during, or after the existence of the marriage by either 
  2.3   or both of them; 
  2.4      (2) the right to buy, sell, use, transfer, exchange, 
  2.5   abandon, lease, consume, expend, assign, create a security 
  2.6   interest in, mortgage, encumber, dispose of, or otherwise manage 
  2.7   and control property; 
  2.8      (3) the disposition of property upon separation, marital 
  2.9   dissolution, death, or the occurrence or nonoccurrence of an 
  2.10  event; 
  2.11     (4) spousal support and maintenance; 
  2.12     (5) support of a child of the parties whether a minor or an 
  2.13  adult, or any other third party, provided that a child's 
  2.14  entitlement under chapter 518 may not be diminished by a marital 
  2.15  agreement; 
  2.16     (6) the making of a will, trust, or other arrangement to 
  2.17  carry out the provisions of the marital agreement; 
  2.18     (7) the ownership right in and disposition of the death 
  2.19  benefit from a life insurance policy; 
  2.20     (8) the choice of law governing the construction of the 
  2.21  marital agreement; and 
  2.22     (9) any other matter, including each party's personal 
  2.23  rights and obligations, not in violation of public policy, 
  2.24  federal or state law, including the Employee Retirement Income 
  2.25  Security Act or the Retirement Equity Act, or a statute imposing 
  2.26  a criminal penalty. 
  2.27     Subd. 4.  [EFFECTIVENESS.] (a) A marital agreement made 
  2.28  before marriage becomes effective upon marriage.  A marital 
  2.29  agreement between spouses becomes effective according to its 
  2.30  terms. 
  2.31     (b) A marital agreement executed on the day of marriage is 
  2.32  not effective. 
  2.33     Subd. 5.  [AMENDMENT AND REVOCATION.] A marital agreement 
  2.34  may be amended or revoked, in whole or in part, only by a 
  2.35  written agreement signed and acknowledged by both parties and 
  2.36  will be effective without consideration.  The provisions of 
  3.1   subdivision 6 applies to all amendments and revocations of 
  3.2   marital agreements. 
  3.3      Subd. 6.  [ENFORCEMENT.] (a) A marital agreement is 
  3.4   presumed to be enforceable if: 
  3.5      (1) both parties were provided with fair and reasonable 
  3.6   disclosure of the property and financial obligations of the 
  3.7   other party; 
  3.8      (2) each party was represented by an attorney or, if not, 
  3.9   the party not represented by an attorney voluntarily waived, 
  3.10  expressly and in writing, the right to be so represented after 
  3.11  having been afforded a meaningful opportunity to be so 
  3.12  represented; and 
  3.13     (3) both parties executed the marital agreement voluntarily.
  3.14     (b) A marital agreement is not enforceable if the party 
  3.15  against whom enforcement is sought establishes that: 
  3.16     (1) the party did not sign the marital agreement 
  3.17  voluntarily; 
  3.18     (2) the agreement was unconscionable when it was executed; 
  3.19  or 
  3.20     (3) the agreement is unconscionable at the time of 
  3.21  enforcement. 
  3.22     (c) A marital agreement described in subdivision 1, 
  3.23  paragraph (a), clause (2), is presumed to be unenforceable if 
  3.24  either party commences an action for legal separation or marital 
  3.25  dissolution within one year of the date of its execution, unless 
  3.26  the party seeking to enforce the marital agreement can establish 
  3.27  that the marital agreement is fair and equitable. 
  3.28     Subd. 7.  [EVIDENCE; BURDEN OF PROOF.] A marital agreement 
  3.29  is prima facie proof of the matters contained in it and as to 
  3.30  those matters, except as provided under subdivision 6, paragraph 
  3.31  (c), the burden of proof is on the party contesting them. 
  3.32     Subd. 8.  [ENFORCEMENT; VOID MARRIAGES.] If a marriage is 
  3.33  determined to be void, a marital agreement that would otherwise 
  3.34  have been a valid and enforceable marital agreement is 
  3.35  enforceable only to the extent necessary to avoid an inequitable 
  3.36  result. 
  4.1      Subd. 9.  [OTHER ACTIONS BY THE PARTIES.] Nothing in this 
  4.2   section impairs the validity or enforceability of a contract, 
  4.3   agreement, or waiver, in whole or in part, that is entered into 
  4.4   after marriage and that deals with spousal rights upon death of 
  4.5   the other spouse under chapters 524 and 525, including, but not 
  4.6   limited to, homestead rights and homestead allowance, elective 
  4.7   share, exempt property, statutory selection, family allowance 
  4.8   and maintenance, contracts concerning succession, or a 
  4.9   conveyance permitted under section 500.19. 
  4.10     Subd. 10.  [LIMITATION OF ACTIONS.] Any statute of 
  4.11  limitations applicable to an action asserting a claim for relief 
  4.12  under a marital agreement is tolled during the marriage of the 
  4.13  parties to the agreement.  However, equitable defenses limiting 
  4.14  the time for enforcement, including laches and estoppel, are 
  4.15  available to either party. 
  4.16     Subd. 11.  [APPLICATION AND CONSTRUCTION.] To the extent 
  4.17  that this section conforms with the Uniform Premarital Agreement 
  4.18  Act, it must be applied and construed to effectuate the general 
  4.19  purpose of that act to make uniform the law with respect to its 
  4.20  subject among the states enacting it. 
  4.21     Subd. 12.  [CITATION.] This section may be cited as the 
  4.22  "Marital Agreement Act." 
  4.23     Sec. 2.  [REPEALER.] 
  4.24     Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 519.11, is repealed. 
  4.25     Sec. 3.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  4.26     Sections 1 and 2 are effective on August 1, 2002, and apply 
  4.27  to all marital agreements entered into by the parties after that 
  4.28  date and, unless expressly prohibited by the terms of the 
  4.29  governing instrument, to the amendment or revocation on or after 
  4.30  that date of: 
  4.31     (1) any antenuptial contract or settlement executed on or 
  4.32  after August 1, 1979, under section 519.11; and 
  4.33     (2) any postnuptial contract or settlement executed on or 
  4.34  after August 1, 1994, under section 519.11, subdivision 1a.