A new book by Dan Solin. Coming soon.

The SmartestMarriage Proposal

Protect Your Money, Your Rights, and Each Other

You’re getting married. Congratulations.

Do you know what you’re agreeing to?

I have a question for you.

Would you sign a business partnership agreement without reading it?
Would you buy a house without understanding your financial obligations?
Of course not.

Yet millions of people get married without understanding the legal and financial rules that will govern their relationship.

Here’s what most couples don’t realize:

The government has already written much of their marriage agreement for them.

They just don’t know what’s in it. And that can be a very expensive mistake.

Love is wonderful.
It’s not a financial plan.

I believe marriage can be one of life’s most rewarding experiences. But I also believe couples deserve to know what they’re getting into.

Marriage can change your rights to property, income, retirement savings, inheritances, and even the financial consequences of decisions you make years from now.

What if one of you gives up a career to raise children?
What happens if one spouse earns substantially more than the other?
What happens to an inheritance?
And what if, despite your best intentions, the marriage doesn’t last?

These aren’t questions most couples want to discuss while planning a wedding.
I understand. But ignoring a problem doesn’t make it disappear.

I wrote this book because I think there’s a better way.

**Dan Solin** *New York Times* bestselling author, former litigator, and architect of the Marriage Partnership Agreement.

In The Smartest Marriage Proposal, I challenge some deeply entrenched assumptions about marriage, money, and protecting the people we love.

I introduce an approach I call the Marriage Partnership Agreement (MPA).

It’s designed to help you and your partner

understand your rights,
discuss your expectations,
and make informed decisions about your future together while you still love and care about each other.

Not because you expect your marriage to fail.

Because you want to give it every opportunity to succeed.

I learned something about this from my own experience.

I asked my wife, Patricia, to sign a conventional prenup protecting my assets. Looking back, I wish I approached that conversation differently. I wish I had known there was a better way to protect both of us.

What an experienced divorce lawyer says

“I spent a career in the wreckage of marriages that ended badly. This is the book I wish my clients read before the wedding.”

Raoul Felder, Esq.One of America’s best-known divorce lawyers

Here’s what I want you to think about.

Before you say “I do,” shouldn’t you understand:

Assets and debts
What happens to the assets and debts each of you brings into the marriage?
Money and careers
How you’ll handle money when your incomes are unequal or one partner sacrifices a career?
Protecting each other
How you’ll protect each other as your circumstances change?
If the marriage ends
What rights each of you will have if the marriage ends or one spouse dies?

I don’t think you should leave these decisions to laws you may never have read. And I don’t think you should wait until there’s a crisis to start discussing them.

Already married or cohabiting?
This book is for you, too.

Whether you’re

Planning your
wedding
Celebrating your
twentieth anniversary
Entering a second
marriage
Living together
without marrying

Have you made thoughtful decisions about how to protect each other if life doesn’t go according to plan?

It’s never too early—or too late—to start that conversation.

This isn’t another book about prenups.

A traditional prenup

Traditional prenuptial agreements often focus on protecting the wealthier person’s assets from claims by the less wealthy one. I think that’s too narrow.

A Marriage Partnership Agreement

The more important question is:

How do we protect each other?

My book draws on research, legal analysis, and real-world experiences to help you approach marriage as a genuine partnership.

I’m not suggesting you turn your relationship into a business transaction. Quite the opposite. I want you to have the conversations that can make your relationship stronger, fairer, and more resilient.

More than a warning. A practical roadmap.

I don’t just explain what can go wrong.

I’ll show you how to

start conversations you may have been avoiding,
identify issues that deserve attention,
and work with qualified professionals to create an agreement that reflects your shared expectations.

You’ll also find questions you can discuss together before meeting with your attorneys.

You’ll finish the book knowing what to ask, what to consider, and how to begin.

A conversation that changed everything

“One of us had already watched an engagement end over a prenup. We expected this to be the hardest conversation of our relationship, and it turned out to be the one that made us surest of each other.”

Anna MorgensternMatchmaker and Dating Expert

Zachary SpiessReal Estate Agent and Founder of 1Drop Gallery