Marriage of Dawley
Supreme Court of California
551 P.2d 323 (1976)
Teachers Betty Johnson (defendant) and James Dawley (plaintiff), fearing loss of their teaching positions due to social disapproval after Betty became pregnant, entered a temporary marriage after knowingly and consensually signing an antenuptial agreement two days before marrying, keeping each person's pre-marriage and subsequently-earned property separate from equitable distribution and providing James would support Betty and her daughter for 14 months after the marriage ended, plus reasonable child support for any child born within the first ten months post-marriage. A second daughter, Lisa, was born shortly after, and although the agreement's 14-month period ended in 1965, the parties didn't actually separate until 1972; when James petitioned for divorce, the trial court upheld the antenuptial agreement, finding no community property to distribute, awarding Betty only $1 monthly alimony plus $300 monthly child support for Lisa while James kept all his income-derived property. Betty appealed.
Whether an antenuptial agreement is unenforceable merely because the parties expressly intend that their marriage will only be temporary and not until death.