Virginia Code

Va. Code Ann. § 20-151 (2026)

Enforcement; void marriage

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section VA-LISlaw.lis.virginia.gov JustiaTitle on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

A. A premarital agreement is not enforceable if the person against whom enforcement is sought proves that:

1. That person did not execute the agreement voluntarily; or

2. The agreement was unconscionable when it was executed and, before execution of the agreement, that person (i) was not provided a fair and reasonable disclosure of the property or financial obligations of the other party; and (ii) did not voluntarily and expressly waive, in writing, any right to disclosure of the property or financial obligations of the other party beyond the disclosure provided.

B. Any issue of unconscionability of a premarital agreement shall be decided by the court as a matter of law. Recitations in the agreement shall create a prima facie presumption that they are factually correct.

C. If a marriage is determined to be void, an agreement that would otherwise have been a premarital agreement shall be enforceable only to the extent necessary to avoid an inequitable result.

1985, c. 434; 1986, c. 201.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 33 cases (7 in the last 5 years), 1992–2026 · leading case: Shenk v. Shenk, 571 S.E.2d 896 (Va. Ct. App. 2002).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Shenk v. Shenk, 571 S.E.2d 896 (Va. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 4× “While Code § 20-151 allows courts to find some marital agreements unconscionable, lack of consideration without deception or bad faith is not a factor in making such a finding.”

Galloway v. Galloway, 622 S.E.2d 267 (Va. Ct. App. 2005). · cites it 4× “” Code § 20-151(B) *92 (applied to post-marital/separation agreements through Code § 20-155).”

McCoy v. McCoy, 687 S.E.2d 82 (Va. Ct. App. 2010). · cites it 4× “Wife does not argue that husband is attempting to collaterally attack the final decree. 5 . For example, if a PSA is not voluntarily executed, or if a PSA is unconscionable under the conditions described in Code § 20-151(A)(2), then a PSA is unenforceable.”

Smith v. Smith, 597 S.E.2d 250 (Va. Ct. App. 2004). · cites it 2× “3(1); see also Code § 20-151(A). Contracts seeking to do this before marriage, like the prenuptial agreement in this case, should be interpreted and enforced no differently than any other type of contract.”

Sims v. Sims, 685 S.E.2d 869 (Va. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 4× ““Any issue of unconscionability of a premarital agreement shall be decided by the court as a matter of law. Recitations in the agreement shall create a prima facie presumption that they are factually correct.”

Chaplain v. Chaplain, 682 S.E.2d 108 (Va. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 2× “” Code § 20-151(A). Wife contends the trial court erred in finding she failed to meet her burden of establishing prima facie that the agreement was unenforceable.”

Perez v. Draskinis, 88 Va. Cir. 195 (Roanoke County Cir. Ct. 2014). · cites it 15× “The Agreement Is Not Unconscionable and Stanley Fairly and Reasonably Disclosed His Assets Under Va. Code § 20-151 (A)(2), a premarital agreement is unenforceable if (1) the agreement is unconscionable and (2) the challenging party did not receive “fair and reasonable”…”

Ekaterina A. Chapin v. Bryan Theodore Chapin (Va. Ct. App. 2017). · cites it 15× “Unlike other contracts, however, prenuptial agreements are subject to being declared unenforceable pursuant to Code § 20-151. In pertinent part, Code § 20-151 provides as follows: A.”

Prabhat Kumar Sinha v. Amit K. Jain, Pers. Rep., etc. (Va. Ct. App. 2026). · cites it 14× “In the amended complaint, Sinha averred that the Agreement is void and unenforceable pursuant to Code § 20-151 and that the Waiver within the Agreement is void and unenforceable pursuant to Code § 64.”

Seong Ja Rector v. Eun Ryong Kim, Individually (Va. Ct. App. 2025). · cites it 13× “Code § 20-151(A); see also Sims v. Sims, 55 Va.”

Randy Lee Remillard v. Terri Lee Remillard (Va. Ct. App. 2022). · cites it 11× “Unconscionability and “fair and reasonable disclosure” of assets Code § 20-151(A) provides: A premarital agreement is not enforceable if the person against whom enforcement is sought proves that: 1.”

Razieh Makoui v. Cyrus Makoui (Va. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 17× “On appeal, she contends the trial court erred in holding that the parties’ premarital agreement was enforceable under Code § 20-151. She contends husband failed to make a fair and reasonable disclosure of his finances prior to their execution of the agreement and that the…”

Show all 33 citing cases →

— Va. Code Ann. § 20-151(A) — 10 cases

Smith v. Smith, 597 S.E.2d 250 (Va. Ct. App. 2004). “3(1); see also Code § 20-151(A). Contracts seeking to do this before marriage, like the prenuptial agreement in this case, should be interpreted and enforced no differently than any other type of contract.”

Chaplain v. Chaplain, 682 S.E.2d 108 (Va. Ct. App. 2009). “” Code § 20-151(A). Wife contends the trial court erred in finding she failed to meet her burden of establishing prima facie that the agreement was unenforceable.”

McCoy v. McCoy, 687 S.E.2d 82 (Va. Ct. App. 2010). “Wife does not argue that husband is attempting to collaterally attack the final decree. 5 . For example, if a PSA is not voluntarily executed, or if a PSA is unconscionable under the conditions described in Code § 20-151(A)(2), then a PSA is unenforceable.”

Perez v. Draskinis, 88 Va. Cir. 195 (Roanoke County Cir. Ct. 2014). “The Agreement Is Not Unconscionable and Stanley Fairly and Reasonably Disclosed His Assets Under Va. Code § 20-151 (A)(2), a premarital agreement is unenforceable if (1) the agreement is unconscionable and (2) the challenging party did not receive “fair and reasonable”…”

Randy Lee Remillard v. Terri Lee Remillard (Va. Ct. App. 2022). “Unconscionability and “fair and reasonable disclosure” of assets Code § 20-151(A) provides: A premarital agreement is not enforceable if the person against whom enforcement is sought proves that: 1.”

— Va. Code Ann. § 20-151(A)(1) — 7 cases

Seong Ja Rector v. Eun Ryong Kim, Individually (Va. Ct. App. 2025). “Code § 20-151(A); see also Sims v. Sims, 55 Va.”

Rabha Namrouri Chaplain v. Billy W. Chaplain (Va. Ct. App. 2011).

Lisa Meria May Gust v. Alexander Mark Gust (Va. Ct. App. 2016).

— Va. Code Ann. § 20-151(A)(2) — 12 cases

Shenk v. Shenk, 571 S.E.2d 896 (Va. Ct. App. 2002). “While Code § 20-151 allows courts to find some marital agreements unconscionable, lack of consideration without deception or bad faith is not a factor in making such a finding.”

Ekaterina A. Chapin v. Bryan Theodore Chapin (Va. Ct. App. 2017). “Unlike other contracts, however, prenuptial agreements are subject to being declared unenforceable pursuant to Code § 20-151. In pertinent part, Code § 20-151 provides as follows: A.”

Seong Ja Rector v. Eun Ryong Kim, Individually (Va. Ct. App. 2025). “Code § 20-151(A); see also Sims v. Sims, 55 Va.”

— Va. Code Ann. § 20-151(A)(2)(i) — 1 case

— Va. Code Ann. § 20-151(A)(2)(ii) — 1 case

— Va. Code Ann. § 20-151(B) — 18 cases

Galloway v. Galloway, 622 S.E.2d 267 (Va. Ct. App. 2005). “” Code § 20-151(B) *92 (applied to post-marital/separation agreements through Code § 20-155).”

Sims v. Sims, 685 S.E.2d 869 (Va. Ct. App. 2009). ““Any issue of unconscionability of a premarital agreement shall be decided by the court as a matter of law. Recitations in the agreement shall create a prima facie presumption that they are factually correct.”

Rabha Namrouri Chaplain v. Billy W. Chaplain (Va. Ct. App. 2011).

Tamea Franco Woodward v. Robert Wayne Woodward, Jr. (Va. Ct. App. 2014).

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.