Prenuptial agreements are becoming increasingly popular with young farmers who do not want their choice of life partner to impact the farm business. Leading farm succession specialist Aisling Meehan said she was now getting a lot more calls about prenuptial agreements, and she described it as “something that was going to start”.

“It became very evident during an IFA series of presentation last year. It kept coming up, over and over and over again – especially with the younger generation,” Meehan told the Irish Rural History and Policy Conference in Limerick last week.

Speaking on the difficulties around succession, Meehan said there is real anxiety among young farmers around choosing a life partner, the implications of that decision for the family farm.

“They [young farmers] are saying: ‘I don’t want my personal decision on picking my future partner to impact on the farm’,” Meehan explained.

“They are saying: ‘It’s too much pressure to pick a life partner without having future generations and my parents’ livelihood riding on the decision’,” she added.

Although Meehan accepted that prenuptial agreements are not enforceable, she told the conference that many wealthy individuals were opting for them in the hope that they will be recognised at some point in the future.

It is also understood that the future recognition of prenuptial agreements is being considered by the Law Society for inclusion in its submission for the next programme for government, Meehan told the conference.

Responding to Meehan’s comments, farm consultant and barrister Ciarán Dolan pointed out that prenuptial agreements “can, and are, taken into account by a judge within the provisions of the Family Law (Divorce) Act”.

However, he claimed that an “enforceable prenuptial agreement may not be consistent with this Constitution and related statutory provisions”.