Why prenups are not enough in family enterprise systems — and the conversations families actually need to have.

In family enterprise systems, asset protection is handled carefully, often through a prenup. Important. Necessary. But not sufficient.

What’s often missing are the important conversations about what it actually means to live inside the system.

Without that clarity, each person operates from a limited view. Decisions are interpreted through individual history, generation, and cultural context. Assumptions form. Narratives harden. Alignment erodes quietly across marriages and over time.

It does not have to be this way. Instead, families and couples could discuss:

➡️ What is expected, and what is not?

➡️ What does ownership mean in practice, and how will it shape the couple’s professional and personal choices?

➡️ What role is a spouse meant to play — observer, participant, decision-maker, supporter?

➡️ Are spouses expected to contribute — socially, operationally, financially — to assets they may not own, control, or directly benefit from?

➡️ How will these expectations shape the way future children experience and understand wealth, responsibility, and belonging?

These conversations are rarely simple. There may not be easy answers. But there is real value in building shared understanding of what is at stake — and in recognizing that different people can see the same decision very differently, often for fair reasons.

A prenup protects assets. Conversations protect relationships. Relationships are what ultimately sustain legacy, capital, and intergenerational cohesion.

If you are navigating this transition — as a parent, next-gen leader, advisor, or spouse — it may be worth asking whether these most important conversations are actually happening.

More on how I support families through this stage: https://www.thorpe-scott.com/spousalintegration