Prenuptial Agreement Requirements in Tennessee

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Tennessee uses a state-specific statute, not UPAA

Tenn. Code Ann. § 36-3-501 governs a prenup concerning property owned by either spouse before marriage. It makes the agreement binding when it was entered freely, knowledgeably, and in good faith, without duress or undue influence, and makes ordinary contract remedies available. Randolph v. Randolph defines the knowledge requirement, while Cary v. Cary supplies the spousal-support rule.

The Statute of Frauds supplies the writing and signature rule

Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-2-101(a) places an agreement made upon consideration of marriage within the Statute of Frauds. Enforcement therefore requires a writing signed by the party against whom enforcement is sought. Bratton v. Bratton confirms that marriage is sufficient consideration for the original prenup.

Deed-style formalities are not universal validity requirements

Neither § 36-3-501 nor § 29-2-101 adds a notary or witness requirement for basic inter-party enforcement. Sections 66-24-105 and 66-24-106 separately direct registration of specified marriage-settlement deeds and agreements settling the prospective wife's property. Those property-recording statutes do not turn every Tennessee prenup into a deed or impose two witnesses across the board.

Randolph requires disclosure or real independent knowledge

The spouse seeking enforcement bears the burden of proving either full and fair disclosure or independent knowledge of the nature, extent, and value of the other spouse's holdings. Disclosure need not identify every asset with precision, but it must give a clear idea of all three components.

The statute and Randolph do not provide a UPAA-style written waiver of further disclosure as a substitute. The alternative is actual independent knowledge, not a generic waiver sentence.

Counsel and wedding timing are factors, not fixed rules

Randolph places Tennessee in the group of states where independent counsel is a factor in whether the agreement was entered knowledgeably, not an absolute requirement. The court also considers the timing of signing relative to the wedding, the parties' sophistication, their business experience, the length of their relationship, and the opportunity to consult counsel. No statute sets a minimum review period.

The statute supplies the core enforceability standard

Section 36-3-501 requires free, knowledgeable, good-faith execution without duress or undue influence. Randolph folds full disclosure or independent knowledge into “knowledgeably.” It also says substantive apparent fairness may affect how much disclosure is adequate, but Tennessee does not apply a general execution-time unconscionability branch or a general changed-circumstances second look to every prenup term.

Cary permits an alimony waiver with one safety valve

Cary holds that a voluntary and knowing alimony waiver or limitation is not against Tennessee public policy. The court enforces it unless the result would make the deprived spouse a public charge. If that happens, the court voids the support provision and awards alimony under the statutory factors; the remedy is not limited by Cary to one particular form of alimony.

Child matters and creditor rights remain outside complete private control

Under § 36-5-101(a)(1) and (e)(1), child support remains in the court's control and the guideline amount is presumptively correct. Tenn. Code Ann. § 36-6-106(a) requires custody decisions to turn on the child's best interests. A prenup therefore cannot conclusively set or waive the court's child-support and custody duties.

Section 36-3-502 also preserves specified creditor protections against a marriage settlement. That is why § 36-3-501 begins with an express exception for § 36-3-502.

A post-marriage change needs more than recycled marriage consideration

Tennessee has no prenup-specific amendment statute. Under Bratton, a change made after marriage is a postnuptial agreement. The existing marriage cannot serve as fresh consideration; consideration must flow to both spouses. The change also must be entered knowledgeably, without fraud, coercion, or duress, and will receive close fair-and-equitable scrutiny because spouses occupy a confidential relationship.

What trips people up

• Independent knowledge must cover value as well as identity. Knowing that a spouse owns a business or land does not necessarily establish knowledge of its nature, extent, and value.
• Counsel is evidence, not a statutory checkbox. Its presence or absence is considered with timing, sophistication, and the rest of the process.
• The alimony exception is a public-charge rule. Tennessee has not enacted the broader uniform-act public-assistance wording or a generic later-hardship review for all terms.

Common questions

Must both prospective spouses sign?

Section 29-2-101 requires the signature of the party to be charged. For a mutual agreement that either spouse may need to enforce, both signatures are therefore necessary.

Is a financial schedule mandatory?

No particular schedule form is mandated. Randolph says attaching a net-worth schedule is a simple way to prove disclosure, but the legal question is whether there was full and fair disclosure or sufficient independent knowledge.

Can a prenup waive alimony completely?

Yes, subject to Cary's public-charge exception. If enforcement would make the deprived spouse a public charge, the court must void that provision and apply the alimony statute.

Statutes and sources

• Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 36-3-501 to -502 — enforceability, contract remedies, and creditor limits. Official Code release, Title 36 (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-2-101(a) — consideration-of-marriage writing and signature rule. Official Code release, Title 29 (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Randolph v. Randolph, 937 S.W.2d 815 (Tenn. 1996) — disclosure, independent knowledge, counsel, timing, and burden of proof. Opinion (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Cary v. Cary, 937 S.W.2d 777 (Tenn. 1996) — alimony waiver and the public-charge exception. Opinion (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 36-5-101 and 36-6-106 — child-support court control, guidelines, and custody best interests. Official Code release, Title 36 (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 66-24-105 to -106 — registration of specified marriage settlements. Official Code release, Title 66 (accessed 2026-07-28).
• Bratton v. Bratton, 136 S.W.3d 595 (Tenn. 2004) — postnuptial agreement consideration and safeguards. Opinion (accessed 2026-07-28).