O.C.G.A.

O.C.G.A. § 19-3-62 (2019)

Requirements and construction of antenuptial agreements

✓ O.C.G.A. — 2019 edition (Public.Resource.Org Release 73)

Code text and O.C.G.A. statutory annotations on this page reflect the 2019 Official Code of Georgia Annotated (Public.Resource.Org Release 73, 2019-08-21; public domain per Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). The Syfert case-law annotations in Notes of Decisions, below, are current.

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An antenuptial agreement shall be in writing, signed by both parties who agree to be bound, and attested by at least two witnesses, one of whom shall be a notary public. Antenuptial agreements shall be liberally construed to carry into effect the intention of the parties, and no want of form or technical expression shall invalidate such agreements.

History

Orig. Code 1863, § 1724; Code 1868, § 1765; Code 1873, § 1775; Code 1882, § 1775; Civil Code 1895, § 2480; Civil Code 1910, § 2999; Code 1933, § 53-401; Ga. L. 2018, p. 155, § 1-1/HB 190.

Annotations

Cross references. Effect of marriage on debt created prior to ceremony, § 13-4-82.

Editor’s notes. For application of this statute in 2020 and 2021, see Executive Orders 04.09.20.01, 06.30.21.02, 07.22.21.02, 08.19.21.02, and 09.20.21.02. Law reviews. For article, “Parentage Prenups and Midnups,” see 31 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 343 (2015).

For annual survey on domestic relations, see 70 Mercer L. Rev. 81 (2018). JUDICIAL DECISIONS Equity has jurisdiction to set aside marriage settlements. Gefken v. Graef, 77 Ga. 340, 1886 Ga. LEXIS 330 (1886). Husband cannot alter antenuptial agreement by postnuptial deed. Maxwell v. Hoppie, 70 Ga. 152, 1883 Ga. LEXIS 304 (1883). Final and complete settlement. - Prenuptial agreement between decedent husband and wife, wherein the wife agreed not to assert any claim on the husband’s estate, constituted a final and complete settlement which the mother and sister of the decedent had standing to enforce. Sieg v. Sieg, 265 Ga. 384, 455 S.E.2d 830, 1995 Ga. LEXIS 169 (1995). Requirement of attestation by two witnesses. - In a divorce case in which a wife appealed the trial court’s denial of the wife’s motion for partial summary judgment on her claim that the antenuptial agreement was unenforceable, the antenuptial agreement was a marriage con-

tract pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 19-3-62(b), and the agreement was unenforceable since the agreement had only been signed by one witness, and O.C.G.A. § 19-3-63 required that every marriage contract in writing, made in contemplation of marriage, must be attested by at least two witnesses. Sullivan v. Sullivan, 286 Ga. 53, 684 S.E.2d 861, 2009 Ga. LEXIS 487 (2009). Trial court did not abuse discretion in setting aside agreement. - Because the evidence supported a finding that one spouse failed to make a full and fair disclosure of assets, income, and liabilities to the other spouse prior to the execution of an antenuptial agreement, hiding specific facts of the spouse’s true financial status, the trial court did not abuse the court’s discretion in setting the agreement aside. Blige v. Blige, 283 Ga. 65, 656 S.E.2d 822, 2008 Ga. LEXIS 44 (2008).

RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. 2d. 41 Am. Jur. 2d, Husband and Wife, §§ 81 et seq., 107, 108, 113, 123. C.J.S. 41 C.J.S., Husband and Wife, §§ 58, 59, 93, 94, 111 et seq., 118, 119, 127, 136, 138, 140 et seq. ALR. Applicability of succession tax law to antenuptial contract, 44 A.L.R. 1475. Validity of postnuptial agreement releasing or waiving rights of surviving spouse on death of other spouse, 49 A.L.R. 116. Agreement not in contemplation of di-

vorce for release of wife’s right to support as contrary to public policy, 50 A.L.R. 351; 120 A.L.R. 1334. Rule regarding revocation of will by marriage as affected by antenuptial agreement or settlement, 92 A.L.R. 1010. Spouse’s right to take under other spouse’s will as affected by antenuptial or postnuptial agreement or property settlement, 53 A.L.R.2d 475. Declaratory judgment, during lifetime of spouses, as to construction of antenuptial agreement dealing with property rights of survivor, 80 A.L.R.2d 941.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 5 cases, 1985–2016 · leading case: Sieg v. Sieg, 455 S.E.2d 830 (Ga. 1995).

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Sieg v. Sieg, 455 S.E.2d 830 (Ga. 1995). · cites it 10× “563 (1849), defendant contends the prenuptial agreement (which plaintiffs attached to their *385 complaint) constituted only “marriage articles,” see OCGA § 19-3-62 (a), to which plaintiffs were not parties and thus because plaintiffs are merely collateral relatives, see OCGA §…”

Dove v. Dove, 680 S.E.2d 839 (Ga. 2009). · cites it 4× “, limits its application to marriage contracts which involve a transfer of property. To the contrary, we have held that a prenuptial agreement which waives each spouse’s rights in the other’s property either before or after death and which does not contemplate a conveyance of…”

Warren v. State, 336 S.E.2d 221 (Ga. 1985). · cites it 2× “Couples may write antenuptial agreements in which they are able to decide, prior to marriage, future settlements, OCGA § 19-3-62; and our legislature has recognized that there can be violence in modern family life and it has enacted special laws to protect family members who…”

Sullivan v. Sullivan, 684 S.E.2d 861 (Ga. 2009). · cites it 2× “We have already held that a prenuptial agreement which, in substantially the same language present here, waives each spouse’s rights in the other’s property either before or after death is a “marriage contract” pursuant to OCGA § 19-3-62 (b).”

In re Randolph, 546 B.R. 474 (Bankr. N.D. Ga. 2016). · cites it 4× “O.C.G.A. § 19-3-62 states: “(a) As used in this article, the term "marriage articles” means any antenuptial agreement between the parties to a marriage contemplating a future settlement upon one spouse.”

— 19-3-62(b) — 1 case

Dove v. Dove, 680 S.E.2d 839 (Ga. 2009). “, limits its application to marriage contracts which involve a transfer of property. To the contrary, we have held that a prenuptial agreement which waives each spouse’s rights in the other’s property either before or after death and which does not contemplate a conveyance of…”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.