Firstly, given the fact that I am a notary and have been for one for going on ten years in Port Elizabeth, it goes without saying that I would possibly not be in favour of pro formas and for slightly different reasons I would not do the remote Internet options.
Just to be clear, let me set out why I would not take either of the above options, if you agree that is great if not, please note that it is merely my personal views and I would never expect anyone to blindly follow advice without looking into it for themselves.
The signing (execution) of Antenuptial contracts is highly regulated because of the chances of fraud et cetera. It is therefore required that the document be signed before a notary ( a specially qualified and enrolled attorney). At this stage let me also state that one can do a power of attorney nominating a third party to appear before the notary and execute the antenuptial or marriage contract.
In certain circumstances this cannot but be avoided, but the reason why the legislature wanted it signed before the notary was the need to be explain the contents of the document and its implications for the couple. This is very important because it deals with money and assets and can be the source of a lot of unhappiness if not addressed properly at the outset.
Failure to fully answer all the questions at the outset can often lead to disagreements which at the end could even cause the erosion of the marriage itself.
In my experience, it is preferable that the notary is not the attorney of either party as this helps avoid any bias intentional or unintentionally and helps increase the level of trust.
I the period of just short of a decade that I have been executing antenuptial contracts I have found that through experience people need that face to face interaction; preferably in a relaxed environment; where they can feel safe to ask questions and have them answered honestly and where both parties are present.
As an additional safeguard the parties are free to have their own legal representative review the contract before signing it; thereby further increasing the safeguards; where this is indicated or where the parties feel that they need further reassurances.
The cost difference between the contracts offered by our offices in Port Elizabeth; are only nominally more than those commonly offered on the Internet. In addition, we also add other value adding advice which almost totally negates the price difference.
Often one is also faced with the fact that one often gets one pays for when it appears substantially less; in the instant cases, the documents my be fine but the real peace of mind I have have comes from the personal reassurance of any unique concerns and the open honest consultation in a safe and relaxed environment; where you can feel free to ask any question or raise any concern.
The value of a face to face meeting when it comes to antenuptial contracts cannot be overstated enough, so the question one must ask oneself is, is the nominal saving worth the risk?
