Why does James Sexton say every couple needs a prenup on The Diary Of A CEO?

James Sexton, a New York divorce lawyer, tells Steven Bartlett that everyone who marries already has a prenup: either the couple writes its own rules, or they inherit the state's default rules, written by politicians who never met them and who can change those rules at any time. He argues the two people in the marriage are better qualified to set its terms, and that agreeing on them up front gives the couple a shared rule set to point back to when something drifts.

• Sexton says many people have stopped him in New York City to say the earlier conversation started a prenup talk with their partner.
• He calls marriage the most legally significant thing most people will ever sign up for, other than dying.

▸In their words

“Every single person who gets married has a prenup. It's either written by the government or it's written by the two people” James Sexton · at 1:40 — open in the transcript →

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett (2026-10-30). Read the whole episode summary →

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