12 prenuptial agreements signed in Georgia in 2015

More couples in Georgia are signing prenuptial agreements before they wed.

Statistics from the Notary Chamber of Georgia revealed increasing numbers of couples were today signing prenuptial agreements than in previous years.

In the first three months of the year 12 marriage contracts were signed, said the Chamber.

This was a huge increase on earlier figures, where only seven couples formed marriage contracts in 2010. Since then the number has steadily increased.

The Notary Chamber of Georgia said 13 marriage contracts were signed in 2011, 21 in 2012, 23 in 2013 and 32 in 2014.

Despite this sharp increase, Georgia’s figures were quite low compared to the number of prenuptial agreements signed in Europe or the United States.

Notary Nino Khopheria explained signing a marriage contract was a western tradition not a Georgian one, but was slowly becoming more popular here.

"Maybe that’s why Georgians aren't interested in forming the agreement,” she mused.

"Also, no one wants to think about divorce problems in their newly wedded time.”

She said a typical marriage agreement described who will be responsible for managing and owning assets and debts during the marriage and how financial issues will be handled if the marriage breaks up. The couple can always change or cancel their marriage agreement at any time, she said.

At least 5 pages of script of a marriage agreement is a legal contract which summarises each person’s obligations to the other. The largest wedding contract includes 21 legal articles and costs 60 GEL.

The number of legal articles and the price of the agreement is determined by the property that is recorded in the contract. The most expensive marriage agreement costs 10,000 GEL.

Furthermore, a marriage contract must be notarised, which means couples must sign the document in front of a notary.

A marriage contract determines the rights of each person regarding property gained after the marriage as well as property already owned by either party. In addition, the agreement may define a rule during the marriage and family expenses after the marriage ends.

Despite low numbers of marriage contracts, tens of thousands of people were still getting married in Georgia each year.

In 2014 there were 31,526 marriages and 9,119 divorces, according to National Statistics Office of Georgia.

The number of marriages decreased by 9.1 percent in 2014 compared to the previous year, while the number of divorces increased by 12.7 percent.

Divorce usually goes hand-in-hand with great unhappiness about the way in which the assets the two parties have jointly acquired over the years should be divided. In cases of divorce, a marriage contract will determine, to a large extent, how these joint assets are shared.

Before saying "I do”, the couple should think not only about property issues but also how to take care of their children, which is also included in the contract, advised the Notary Chamber Georgia.