Opinion
03-28-2017
Edward ABRAM, Plaintiff–Appellant, v. JOANNE CHEUNG SUI MEI, Defendant–Respondent.
Law Offices of Peter M. Nissman, New York (Peter M. Nissman of counsel), for appellant.
Law Offices of Peter M. Nissman, New York (Peter M. Nissman of counsel), for appellant.
FRIEDMAN, J.P., SWEENY, RENWICK, ANDRIAS, MANZANET–DANIELS, JJ.
Order, Supreme Court, New York County (Lori S. Sattler, J.), entered January 20, 2016, which, inter alia, upheld the parties' prenuptial agreement upon inquest, unanimously affirmed, without costs. Plaintiff husband's efforts to meet his "very high" burden of challenging the parties' prenuptial agreement fail (Anonymous v. Anonymous, 123 A.D.3d 581, 582, 999 N.Y.S.2d 386 [1st Dept.2014] ). The plain language of the parties' agreement reveals that the husband's assets to be protected were substantial and that the wife received the maintenance award in question as a quid pro quo. Where, as here, a prenuptial agreement and the circumstances surrounding its execution are "fair," there is no further inquiry (Levine v. Levine, 56 N.Y.2d 42, 47, 451 N.Y.S.2d 26, 436 N.E.2d 476 [1982] [internal quotation marks omitted] ). Furthermore, the husband's efforts to establish that the agreement was the product of duress are not persuasive (see Barocas v. Barocas, 94 A.D.3d 551, 942 N.Y.S.2d 491 [1st Dept.2012], appeal dismissed 19 N.Y.3d 993, 951 N.Y.S.2d 468, 975 N.E.2d 914 [2012] ).
We have considered the husband's remaining contentions and find them unavailing.