Pre-Marital Assets in Divorce

eshroom

I have read a lot and am unable to find an answer, so please have a quick read before judging.

My sibling and I inherited a property when we were children. That was in turn inherited by our father and so on for generations. Neither of us live in the property, it is used for holiday lets and generates a small income (less than running costs).

We could never dream of selling said property and would like to maintain it for the next generation(s).

We both have other assets, which in comparison pale in personal significance, and we have no interest in protecting any of these in case of marriage breakdown - you get married you share. But how much I trust my partner or my sibling does their's becomes irrelevant when considering the commitment we have to each other and our (perceived) commitment to maintain the property for the next generation. I can't expect my sibling to risk losing the house because of a breakdown in my potential marriage or vice versa.

The property has never been valued, but should it be, it would be worth many, many multiples our other assets. Indeed, if we were to sell it, we could ditch the 9-5 and we and our future families would no doubt never have to work again.

So the questions is, is there any solid way to ring-fence this "asset" outside of either of our future marriages?

Homeownertobe

A well-prepared trust fund would be your best bet, but a specialist solicitor would be best placed to advise on this.

eshroom

Thanks for the quick reply. Unfortunately, whilst we are UK citizens/residents, the property is not in the UK - trusts are not recognised there.

mgdavid

if you say which country it *is* in then someone might have relevant experience, otherwise all we can do is recommend you seek legal advice in that country.

justme111

If you are uk citizens would not your hypothetical divorces and assets be dealt with by uk law anyway ?

macca1974

if it worth as much as you think, then i would get specialist advice in both the UK and the country it is in and see if you can secure it in some form of structure for the future. If it was the UK, then you might wrap it up in a trust but who knows.

Excuse me for being nosey, but what kind of asset would be worth so much that you and your sibling could retire (so presumably 7 figures plus) yet doesn't cover its running costs?? Feel free to ignore the question!

HPoirot

What are the laws regarding pre-marital assets in the jurisdiction where the property is? I bet it isn't the "what's yours is mine" prevalent in the UK, and I would seek advice from that jurisdiction. With a view to incorporating it into a pre-nup if you are to get married here.

Slinky

macca1974 wrote: »

if it worth as much as you think, then i would get specialist advice in both the UK and the country it is in and see if you can secure it in some form of structure for the future. If it was the UK, then you might wrap it up in a trust but who knows.

Excuse me for being nosey, but what kind of asset would be worth so much that you and your sibling could retire (so presumably 7 figures plus) yet doesn't cover its running costs?? Feel free to ignore the question!

They may only rent it out to friends/family and not all the time it could be

eshroom

Macca, to answer your questions, we don't want to compromise the history of the building by implementing the changes luxury operators demand.

Hpoirot, you are right, divorce laws regarding pre-marital assets are not the same as the UK and are not "what's yours is mine" but my understanding is that, notwithstanding countries that have ratified The Convention on the Law Applicable to Matrimonial Property Regimes, it is the country where the divorce takes place that has jurisdiction over asset division.

HPoirot

It is not just when divorce happens but rather who owns / has responsibility for the asset / any rights to it during the lifetime of the marriage and beyond. As I said I would be looking into incorporating the dispositions of that jurisdiction into a prenup with regards to that asset.

eshroom

So a pre-nup stipulating that any dispute relating to that asset be resolved in that jurisdiction? And would that stand up in UK court?