Prenuptial agreements have become a mainstream financial-planning tool, with usage climbing 62% over the past decade and now involving nearly 40 million Americans, according to a 2023 Harris Poll. Among engaged or married Gen Z respondents, 41% have signed a prenup, while 47% of millennials have done so—a sharp increase from roughly 8% in the 1990s. This shift is reshaping how wealth managers and family-law attorneys collaborate to serve clients.
Divorce and custody attorney Rock Rocheleau of Right Lawyers told InvestmentNews that several factors are driving the trend. Younger generations witnessed divorce rates near 60% during their childhoods, reducing the stigma around planning for marital dissolution. “Till death do us part has quietly become till divorce do us part,” Rocheleau said. Additionally, couples are marrying later, often bringing substantial assets—houses, retirement accounts, investment portfolios, and businesses—into the union, making prenups a practical safeguard.
Rocheleau noted that the process has become more accessible thanks to AI tools and services like LegalZoom, which allow couples to explore prenup options without incurring high legal fees upfront. “Lower barriers mean more people are actually doing it,” he said. Millennials are the primary drivers, but older adults entering second marriages are also increasingly requesting prenups and even post-nuptial agreements, sometimes using vehicles like Nevada Asset Protection Trusts for added sophistication.
Effective prenup planning requires close coordination between financial advisors and attorneys. Rocheleau described the dynamic as “Plan A and Plan B.” Advisors focus on Plan A—helping couples build wealth and thrive together through investment knowledge, tax strategy, and long-term planning. Attorneys handle Plan B, drafting agreements that protect each party’s assets and define how future wealth will be divided if the marriage ends. “The best outcomes happen when both professionals are talking to each other,” Rocheleau emphasized.
Three critical elements determine a prenup’s enforceability in court. First, full financial disclosure is mandatory: both parties must list every asset, debt, and account. Concealing assets can invalidate the entire agreement. Second, each spouse must have the opportunity to obtain independent legal advice, and that opportunity must be documented. Third, timing is crucial. Rocheleau warned against presenting a prenup just days before the wedding, as courts view such pressure unfavorably. “If it looks like someone felt pressured to sign because the venue was already booked… that’s a problem,” he said.
For advisors, understanding the prenup’s terms enables more accurate financial planning. For example, knowing which assets are separate versus marital can influence tax strategies, retirement projections, and estate plans. Attorneys, in turn, rely on advisors to provide a clear picture of the couple’s financial reality, ensuring the agreement reflects actual holdings and goals. This synergy is especially important as clients increasingly expect holistic advice that bridges legal and financial domains.
The rise in prenups also aligns with broader industry trends. As noted in InvestmentNews’ 2026 Benchmarking Study, advisory firms are adapting to clients’ evolving needs, including more sophisticated estate and marital planning. Similarly, the shift from episodic to continuous retirement planning, highlighted in a recent analysis, underscores the importance of integrating legal considerations into long-term wealth strategies.
Rocheleau concluded that the most challenging aspect of prenups remains initiating the conversation. “The hardest fight is asking for the prenup in the first place,” he said. Advisors who proactively raise the topic—framing it as a prudent financial step rather than a lack of trust—can help clients navigate emotional resistance. By working in tandem with attorneys, wealth managers can ensure that prenups serve their intended purpose: protecting clients’ financial futures without undermining the relationship.
