What Happens if a Spouse Lies to Secure a Postnuptial Agreement?

Although you often hear about engaged couples signing a prenuptial agreement prior to marriage, a couple that is already married can sign a similar contract known as a postnuptial agreement. As with any contract, a court may invalidate a postnuptial agreement if it is found to be the product of fraud or duress. This can include using a false promise to induce the other party to sign the agreement in the first place.

Maryland Judge Invalidates Contract After Wife Never Returned to Marital Home

A recent unpublished decision from the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, Avramidis v. Theo, offers an example of how “fraudulent inducement” can undo a postnuptial agreement. This case involves a husband and wife who started living together in 1998 but did not marry until 2014. In 2019, the parties separated and agreed to a pendente lite order. This is an order used by courts to help preserve the status quo in cases where divorce is pending. This order required the husband to pay the wife $3,000 per month in alimony and also gave her access to a credit card with an additional $2,500 per month limit.

A few months later, the couple decided to attempt a reconciliation. As part of this process, they also agreed to sign a postnuptial agreement in case things still did not work out. The postnuptial agreement provided that in the event of another separation or divorce, the husband would pay the wife $1,500 per month in alimony ($3,500 if they were no longer living together) and a $1.1 million financial settlement, which the husband would secure via a lien and promissory note against his real estate business.

Although the husband signed the agreement in December 2019, the wife did not sign until February 2020. According to the wife, during the two days leading up to her signing the agreement, the husband committed physical acts of domestic violence against her. On the morning that she finally signed the agreement, he threatened to kill her. Nevertheless, she signed the agreement but she left the marital home and did not return.

When the wife again filed for divorce, the husband moved to invalidate the postnuptial agreement. He argued the agreement was procured by fraud since when the wife signed the contract, she had already decided to leave him and file for divorce. The trial court agreed there was fraudulent inducement and declared the agreement invalid.

The Court of Special Appeals affirmed. It explained that the wife’s actions amounted to making a false promise–that she would keep living with the husband–to secure his performance under the agreement. That said, the appellate court noted that invalidating the postnuptial agreement simply returned the parties to their pre-contract state. This meant the wife could ask the trial court to reinstate the original pendente lite order or issue a new order taking into account the husband’s alleged domestic violence.

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This article has been provided by the Law Office of Robert Castro. For more information or questions contact our office to speak to an experienced lawyer at (301) 870-1200.

Source:

https://www.courts.state.md.us/sites/default/files/unreported-opinions/1186s20.pdf