How Do You Challenge an Unfair Prenuptial Agreement in Illinois?

 Posted on August 28, 2025 in Family Law

A prenuptial agreement, or prenup, should bring peace of mind, not anxiety. If yours feels one-sided or rushed, you still have choices. Illinois courts look at how the agreement was made and what each person knew at the time they signed it. With the right facts, a judge can limit or throw out terms that clearly favor one side over the other. First, you need to speak with a Geneva, IL prenuptial agreement attorney to find out more about the specifics of your case.

What Makes a Prenuptial Agreement Unfair Under Illinois Law?

Some reasons a judge may treat a prenup as unfair include:

• You were pressured to sign, for example, if there were threats to cancel the wedding or very little time to decide before the wedding was scheduled to take place.

• The agreement was extremely one-sided, and you were not given a clear understanding of your spouse’s assets and debts.

• The document arrived at the last minute, and you had no real opportunity to review, ask questions, or negotiate.

• Important assets or debts were hidden, misstated, or undervalued, and the numbers you saw did not reflect reality.

• You were discouraged from hiring your own lawyer, or you signed without anyone explaining how the terms would affect you.

• A maintenance waiver would leave you facing serious and unforeseen hardship if the agreement were enforced.

These problems point to a lack of voluntariness or an unconscionable deal under 750 ILCS 10/7 and may justify court relief.

Is There Anything You Cannot Include in a Prenup in Illinois?

Under 750 ILCS 10/4, you can cover property rights, how to manage assets during the marriage, how to divide assets and debts at divorce, and whether to modify or waive maintenance in a prenup. However, a prenup cannot decide child support or lock in parenting time. Those decisions must be made later based on the child’s best interests. If a clause tries to restrict a child’s rights or predetermine how custody would be arranged in a hypothetical divorce, a judge can strike it and still enforce the fair parts of the agreement.

How Do You Challenge a Prenuptial Agreement in Illinois?

The first step in challenging a prenup is to contact an attorney. Save drafts, emails, texts, calendar entries, and notes about when you first saw the document and who explained it. Gather financial records to compare with the disclosure. This may include tax returns, bank and brokerage statements, appraisals, and business documents. Timing matters, so write down when you received each draft and how much time you had to review it.

Meet with a family law attorney to review how the prenup was signed, what was disclosed to you, and whether it was fair. If there are problems, your lawyer can ask the court to throw out the agreement or remove unfair parts, including a maintenance waiver based on missing information. A judge may set aside the whole agreement, keep only the fair terms, or allow limited discovery to uncover a more accurate picture of the finances. Many cases settle once both sides understand the risks. If the prenup is invalid, your divorce follows the normal Illinois rules for property and support.

Schedule a Free Consultation With a Kane County, IL Prenuptial Agreement Attorney

If your prenup feels unfair, talk with us before you make big decisions. At Serrano Hanson & Hurtado, LLC, our attorneys bring more than 50 years of combined family law experience, and we deliver prompt, personal service. We will review your prenup timeline and disclosures, explain your options in clear language, and build a plan to negotiate or go to court. If the judge limits or throws out the agreement, we will work for fair arrangements about property and support under Illinois law. Call 630-844-8781 today to schedule your free consultation with one of our Geneva, IL prenuptial agreement lawyers. Hablamos Español.