Case Update (23 Oct 2025): Greenboom v. Ran; Parties can voluntarily waive spousal maintenance and choose a forum to litigate it in a prenup
The parties are spouses, who married in Israel. Prior to their marriage, they signed a premarital agreement, and lodged it in an Israeli court. The agreement chose the Israeli family court as the forum of choice for the agreement. The agreement had a clause waiving alimony under certain circumstances, which the Wife acknowledged was problematic, but, was done willingly, after consideration. The parties subsequently moved to Arizona, and have lived there for over 15 years, raising a family.
In September 2024, the Husband petitioned the Israeli court to enforce the premarital agreement as part of the parties’ divorce. In October 2024, the Wife petitioned the Arizona Superior Court for dissolution and sought temporary orders. In December 2024, the Wife also moved to dismiss the Israeli action under forum non conveniens. The Husband sought to dismiss the Arizona action because the financial distribution was governed by the premarital agreement, which was pending in an Israeli court. The Arizona court allowed the parties to proceed with arguing over temporary spousal maintenance, ultimately denying the Wife’s request.
In a special subsequent action, the Court of Appeals reconsidered its ruling. In doing so, it acknowledged that spouses may contract to eliminate spousal maintenance in a premarital agreement, and to specify the forum if doing so does not violate public policy. The person against whom the agreement is being enforced bears the burden of proving it is unenforceable. It is only unenforceable if it was signed involuntarily or if it was unconscionable, and, before its execution, issues arose with the disclosure of the other party’s finances. The Husband presented a prima facie valid premarital agreement, and Wife conceded she was not challenging its formation, nor does she contest its validity or enforceability. If she wants to contest other aspects of the agreement, that is not an issue for Arizona’s courts to decide. If the Israeli court does not decide matters of the agreement, then it would be appropriate for the Arizona court to do so. Therefore, the Wife can return to the Arizona court if the Israeli court does not address spousal maintenance, “either by determining itself an inconvenient forum or by declining to rule on the alimony term.”
The Arizona court accepted jurisdiction over the divorce, but denied the Wife’s relief for temporary spousal maintenance, without prejudice.
