The headlines buzzing around Kandi Burruss and Todd Tucker may look like celebrity gossip, but beneath the glitter sits a painfully common truth: couples create prenups with the best of intentions, then never look at them again. Life evolves, finances shift, family structures change — and suddenly, a contract drafted years ago becomes the battlefield for a divorce neither spouse imagined.

Todd Tucker now claims he signed the agreement under duress and without enough time to consult with an attorney. He is challenging the terms and seeking primary custody of the two children they share, arguing that he has been the day-to-day parent due to Burruss’s demanding career schedule. Meanwhile, Kandi’s side points to a video of Tucker, just prior to their marriage, saying he was ready to sign. One prenup, two conflicting stories, and a court left to sort out what was supposed to be “simple.”

Strip away the celebrity factor and the lesson is straightforward: A prenup that isn’t updated becomes a liability — emotionally, legally, and financially.

Prenups Are Not Meant to Be Set-and-Forget Documents

Most couples treat prenuptial agreements like a time capsule sealed right before the wedding — a “just in case” insurance policy. But marriages aren’t static. They’re the opposite: unpredictable, evolving, full of financial and emotional plot twists.

The problem? The prenup stays frozen in year one while the marriage marches into year ten, fifteen, eighteen.

That gap creates friction.
The friction becomes resentment.
Resentment becomes litigation.
Litigation becomes headlines — or worse, a financial meltdown for families without celebrity resources.

What changes over the course of a marriage?

• A lot more than people admit.
• Income rises or falls.
• One spouse may leave the workforce.
• Children enter the picture — and completely shift financial responsibilities.
• A business starts, grows, or collapses.
• A spouse’s career becomes demanding enough that the other becomes the primary caregiver.
• Assets expand, shrink, or change form (real estate, investments, intellectual property, retirement, etc.).

The prenup signed before any of these realities existed may no longer protect either spouse. In fact, it may actively harm the one who sacrificed the most.

That’s why courts are willing to examine prenups critically — especially when one spouse claims they had no time, no counsel, or no meaningful ability to negotiate. And that’s why couples who haven’t reviewed their agreement in ten years are often the ones blindsided when divorce proceedings begin.

The Real Prevention Strategy: Periodic Reviews and Postnuptial Agreements

If a prenup is a snapshot, a postnup is the updated portrait.

Couples should treat these agreements the same way businesses treat their contracts, insurance policies, and financial plans — with scheduled check-ins.
Not because they expect failure, but because ignoring legal documents is how failure becomes catastrophic.

A five-year prenup review should be as normal as renewing a passport.
A major life event review should be automatic.

What qualifies as a major life event?

• Marriage produces children
• One spouse stops working or significantly reduces hours
• A business launches
• A business becomes wildly more successful
• Significant inheritance or windfall
• Large investments or real estate changes
• Relocation to another state with different marital laws

Every one of these should trigger a conversation — and often, a postnuptial agreement to revise outdated terms.

A postnup doesn’t erase the prenup; it refines it. It updates roles, expectations, and financial realities. It keeps both spouses honest. And it prevents exactly the type of “I signed under duress” narrative we’re seeing now in the Burruss/Tucker case.

Fair Disclosure: The Ingredient Most Couples Skip

The most common flaw in prenup challenges is simple:
incomplete or unfair financial disclosure.

You can’t meaningfully waive rights to assets you didn’t know existed or fully understand. And you can’t agree to long-term financial terms when you didn’t have clarity about your spouse’s money, liabilities, or future outlook.

This is why prenups — and postnups — must be built with:

• transparency
• documentation
• independent legal counsel
• time (no last-minute wedding-day panic signing)

The more open the process, the harder it is to challenge later. Hidden accounts, rushed signatures, and blurred boundaries don’t age well. They turn into courtroom narratives.

The Bigger Truth: Updating Your Prenup Protects the Relationship, Not Just the Divorce Outcome

A lot of couples assume negotiating financial agreements means they don’t trust each other. In reality, the opposite is true. Open financial communication is a form of intimacy — one that prevents resentment and power imbalance from brewing silently.

When couples revisit their prenup or create a postnup, they are asking:

• Are we still aligned?
• Has life changed in ways we didn’t anticipate?
• Are we both protected?
• Are our contributions — financial, parental, emotional — reflected fairly?

These questions strengthen marriages far more than they threaten them.

Bringing It Back to the Headlines

What’s happening between Kandi Burruss and Todd Tucker isn’t shocking. It’s predictable. A prenup written in the early stage of a relationship may not reflect what a family looks like a decade later — especially when careers evolve, children are born, and expectations shift.

Had their agreement been revisited periodically, there would likely be:

• fewer arguments
• fewer claims of duress
• fewer custody conflicts linked to financial leverage
• fewer sensational headlines

Their situation is a cautionary tale for everyone else:

If you don’t update the contract, the contract will eventually update you — in ways you may not like.

Final Thought

For couples, attorneys, mediators, and family-law professionals, the message is clear:
Prenups protect marriages when they evolve with marriages.

A well-maintained agreement is not a forecast of failure. It’s a tool of clarity, fairness, and long-term stability. Whether you’re newly engaged or twenty years into partnership, revisiting your agreement is one of the most responsible steps you can take for your financial and emotional future.