What do Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Engagement and Prenup Entail? Peter M. Walzer Explains on ABC 7 News
[Source: ABC7 News]
Celebrity Divorce Lawyer Peter M. Walzer Explains What Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Engagement and Prenup Entails
The whole world is talking about the upcoming Royal Wedding; Prince Harry is about to marry American actress Meghan Markle.
For regular people, marrying someone from another country is not as easy as it sounds. Here with the look of challenges of international marriages, is top family law attorney Peter M. Walzer.
What are the main things people need to be aware of with international marriages?
“It’s good they have an agreement in advance and it’s good to talk about their problems. The problems are financial. Who is going to take care of who? We have ideas, but we need to talk about it. We also need to talk about citizenship, religion, raising children, where are they going to live, many questions,” voices premier California divorce attorney Peter M. Walzer.
Would it seem right for Meghan Markle and Prince Harry to have a premarital or prenuptial agreement?
“I think they need two premarital agreements-maybe more. At least one in the United Kingdom and one in the United States. Most countries have marital regimes which they sign onto a type of marriage-whether a community or separate regimes. So they may need two or three,” explains Peter M. Walzer.
What happens to their citizenship? If you marry someone from another country, they come here and vice versa, what then?
“Once you get married, you can apply for a green card and if you are married two years you can qualify to become a citizen. For England, it’s probably different. She could become a citizen of England and she has to decide if she wants to be a dual citizen, a citizen of one country or the other and that’s a tough decision. You get to pick,” states elite family law attorney Peter M. Walzer.
What about kids? They have to have a conversation about if they want their children born in England or America.
“That’s the toughest issue. Once you are in a country, you can’t just move out of the country. You have to get permission from the other parent. So if she decides to move to England, she’s making a commitment to raise her children in England and live there for the next 18 years or so. That’s a big commitment. So there has to be some discussion. Usually prenups cover it, but they definitely cover money and confidentiality. In this case, the Prince is going to want to have a nondisclosure agreement. And it will be critical to this agreement,” voices Peter M. Walzer.
If there was a separation, can Meghan take the kids out of England?
“She would need permission from the court. Often the court says the kids need to be raised by both parents. That’s a very tough issue to resolve,” explains family law attorney Peter M. Walzer.
Meghan confirmed she is retiring from acting. For regular people, do you think it’s wise for someone to give up their career?
“Not for regular people. When someone does that, they need a guarantee of some finances, some security. ‘If I’m going to give up my career, I need x dollars, I need a house to live in, I need an income.’ Even the ordinary person-most ordinary people don’t get prenups, but the rich ordinary person will want security if they are going to give up their career for somebody else,” states top family law attorney Peter M. Walzer.
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