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Free Louisiana Prenuptial Agreement Template

A Louisiana prenup, called a matrimonial agreement in the Civil Code, sets your property rules before marriage. Start with our guided form and finish every formality before the wedding.

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  • E-sign included

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What Is a Prenuptial Agreement in Louisiana?

A Louisiana prenuptial agreement is a matrimonial agreement signed before the wedding to set or change the rules for a couple’s property. The Civil Code covers these agreements in its articles on matrimonial regimes.

Louisiana Requirements for a Prenuptial Agreement

Louisiana’s rules come from Civil Code articles 2329 through 2332.

Two Accepted Forms

Under art. 2331, spouses may sign a matrimonial agreement before or during marriage. The spouses must use an authentic act or an act under private signature that they duly acknowledge.

Limits on What You Can Change

Article 2330 sets hard limits. Spouses can’t use the agreement to renounce or alter the marital portion or the established order of succession. Nor can they limit, toward third persons, one spouse’s legal-regime right to obligate the community. The same goes for that spouse’s right to sell, encumber, or lease community property.

Filing So Others Are Bound

Under art. 2332, the agreement takes effect toward third persons only once it’s filed for registry. For immovable property, that means the conveyance records of the parish where the property sits. Movables are different: file in the parish or parishes where the spouses are domiciled.

Can You Sign a Louisiana Prenup After the Wedding?

Usually not without a judge. Article 2329 lets spouses modify or terminate their matrimonial regime during marriage only on a joint petition. The court must also find that the change serves their best interests and that they understand the governing rules.

There are two exceptions. Spouses may return to the legal regime at any time without court approval. Also, during the first year after moving into and acquiring a domicile in Louisiana, spouses may enter a matrimonial agreement without court approval.

For couples marrying in Louisiana, the lesson is simple. Finish every step of your Louisiana prenuptial agreement, including the formal acknowledgment, before the ceremony.

Tip

Schedule the notary appointment weeks ahead, not days. Once you’re married, changing your regime usually means a court petition. Building in extra time protects your Louisiana prenuptial agreement from a last-minute gap.

How to Sign a Louisiana Prenuptial Agreement

  1. Choose your form. Decide between an authentic act and an act under private signature.
  2. Book a Louisiana notary early. Ask which form fits your situation and what the signing requires.
  3. Complete the acknowledgment before the wedding. Both partners take part if you use a private act.
  4. File in the right parish records. Record it where any immovable property sits and where you’re domiciled.
  5. Keep certified copies. Store them with your property records.

What to Include in a Louisiana Prenuptial Agreement

A Louisiana prenuptial agreement typically states:

  • Whether you choose a regime of separation of property or modify the legal regime
  • Which property each partner keeps as separate
  • How you’ll manage property during the marriage
  • The parishes where you’ll file the agreement
  • Signatures, plus the acknowledgment or authentic-act formalities

Leave out any term that renounces or alters the marital portion or the order of succession, since art. 2330 bars those changes.