"Marriage of convenience"?

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JessieB

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I am looking for legal advice concerning marriage.

I am considering marrying someone for financial and legal benefits. This is someone I fully trust and probably want to marry in the future, but we are not ready to publically marry and need the legal advantages immediately. I am a graduate student and my partner will be joining the Air Force.

My questions are:

1. What are the legal and financial benefits or disadvantages of being married? How will this affect finances, taxes, etc.?

2. How secure are prenuptual agreements, i.e. if we sign an agreement to basically not share anything, will that stand or is it more complicated?

3. How easy would it be to keep a marriage secret from family? In other words, how much does being "married" really affect everyday life in an obvious way? If we wanted to marry publically in the future (have a ceremony), would it be possible to keep the original marriage concealed?

Please help! Thank you.
 
1. What are the legal and financial benefits or disadvantages of being married? How will this affect finances, taxes, etc.?

A: There are tons of books and articles written about those questions.



2. How secure are prenuptual agreements, i.e. if we sign an agreement to basically not share anything, will that stand or is it more complicated?

A: If each of you has his or her own attorney and you make a full disclosure, a prenuptial agreement may work. However, the longer you are married, the less likely the court will enforce it if you get divorced. Also, mixture of funds, etc. can weaken such an agreement.


3. How easy would it be to keep a marriage secret from family? In other words, how much does being "married" really affect everyday life in an obvious way? If we wanted to marry publically in the future (have a ceremony), would it be possible to keep the original marriage concealed?

A: Marriage is a public record; it can't be kept secret. You must have a ceremony to get married, whether it is civil or religious.
 
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