Nothing can kill romance faster than the words prenuptial agreement (also affectionately known as a prenup). But before you decide to shelve the idea, you might want to consider some of the advantages of having such an agreement before leaping into marriage.

A prenuptial agreement is a contract between two people about to wed that outlines how assets will be distributed in the event of divorce or death. The notion of a prenup is not new. In fact, it has existed for thousands of years in some form or another, particularly among royalty in European and far Eastern societies who needed to protect their family