For account executives
You closed the deal before the wedding. Who owns the commission?
It depends, and that uncertainty is the point. Commission is usually earned when a deal closes but paid over the following quarters, so money you booked while single can land while you are married. A prenup lets you and your partner settle the treatment in advance. Neptune is the lawyer-led online prenup service: both partners get their own lawyer for one flat fee.
Flat fee of $5,000 per couple. No payment to get started.
The timing problem
Commission does not respect the wedding date
The hard part of a sales income is not how much you make. It is when the money is considered earned versus when it actually shows up. Four patterns come up again and again.
Earned now, paid later
You close a deal the month before your wedding, but the commission lands in three quarterly payments after you are married. Was that money earned before the marriage, or during it? Reasonable people disagree, which is the whole problem.
Accelerators and the Q4 cliff
Blow past quota and your accelerators can turn a good year into a great one, with much of it landing in a single quarter. When that quarter straddles a wedding date, the size of the swing makes the timing question expensive.
Multi-year and deferred payouts
Many plans pay year-one bookings up front and years two and three in smaller tranches. A three-year contract you signed while single can keep paying out well into a marriage.
Clawbacks cut both ways
If a customer churns or a deal is rescinded, some plans claw the commission back. A prenup can address not just who owns the upside, but who carries the risk if paid commission has to be returned.
Why it fits
Built for how sales pay actually works
You already negotiate comp plans for a living. A prenup applies the same clear thinking to the money side of your marriage, before the numbers get big and the questions get emotional.
- 1
Your income is lumpy, not linear
Base salary is steady. Variable pay is not. A typical account executive carries a roughly 50/50 split between base and commission, so half your income arrives in uneven bursts tied to when deals close and when finance pays. A prenup can describe how that variable half is treated instead of leaving it to a court to reconstruct years later.
- 2
The wedding rarely lines up with the sales calendar
Quotas run on the fiscal year. Weddings do not. When a big close and a wedding date fall in the same stretch, a clear agreement beats an argument about which side of the line the money fell on.
- 3
Equity often rides along with the comp plan
Many account executive packages layer stock options or restricted stock units on top of base and commission. That equity usually vests over four years with a one-year cliff, so a grant made before the wedding can keep vesting long into the marriage. A prenup can set how the pre-marriage portion is treated.
- 4
You already read the fine print for a living
You negotiate accelerator caps, ramp, and clawback language every time you take a new role. Applying that same clarity to your own finances before marriage is a natural extension, not a leap.
A clear comparison
Template platform vs lawyer-led platform
A downloadable form does not know how your commission plan pays out. Here is how a fill-in-the-blank template compares with a lawyer-led prenup for someone with variable pay.
| Feature | Template platform | Lawyer-led platform (Neptune) |
|---|---|---|
| Handles deferred commission | Generic language, no tailoring | Terms drafted around your pay plan |
| Independent counsel for each partner | None | A separate attorney for each of you |
| Addresses accelerators and clawbacks | Rarely, if ever | Yes, based on your actual plan |
| Guided intake before the legal work | Fill in the blanks alone | AI-guided intake for both partners |
| Price | Low upfront, unclear if it holds up | $5,000 flat, both attorneys included |
How Neptune works
From first question to signed agreement
Get aligned with guided intake
Walk through your base, variable pay, equity, and goals as a couple. Neptune's guided intake helps both partners get clear on the numbers before any legal work begins.
Work with two independent attorneys
Neptune connects each partner with a separate, licensed attorney for a free consultation. One represents you, a different attorney represents your partner. No payment until you decide to move forward.
Review, finalize, and sign
Your drafting attorney prepares an agreement built around your situation, and your partner's reviewing attorney reviews it with them independently. Turnaround is typically around 3 to 4 weeks.
Transparent pricing
One flat fee. Two independent attorneys.
$5,000
per couple, total
No hourly billing. No payment required to start. Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days, and complexity factors may affect the final fee.
Start your prenupGuides and resources
Read more before you begin
How to handle RSUs and options in a prenup
Many account executive packages layer equity on top of commission. Here is how vesting equity is commonly addressed.
Read the guideThe definitive guide to option vesting in prenups
A closer look at vesting schedules, cliffs, and the before-versus-during question that also applies to deferred commission.
Read the guidePrenup and estate plan cost, state by state (2026)
What couples actually pay for legal help, and how a flat fee compares to hourly billing.
Read the guideGuides for you
Guides on assets, debt, and equity
Start with the guides other couples read before they begin, then take the next step when you are ready.
Common questions from account executives
If I close a deal before the wedding but the commission pays out after, whose money is it?
That timing gap is one of the most common questions account executives bring to a prenup, and there is no single automatic answer. Commission is usually earned when a deal closes but paid over the following quarters, so a commission that is booked while you are single can land in your account while you are married. Rules for what counts as separate versus marital property differ from state to state, and your attorney can review what applies where you live. A prenup lets you and your partner decide the treatment up front, in writing, rather than reconstructing close dates and pay dates during a divorce.
Can a prenup cover commission I have not earned yet?
Yes. A prenup can set rules for future income and how variable pay, accelerators, and deferred commission are treated going forward, not just for money already in the bank. Because your earnings can swing widely year to year, defining the framework in advance is often more useful than trying to divide a specific number. Your attorney can walk you through how to write terms that handle future quotas and pay plans you have not signed yet.
What about stock options or restricted stock units in my package?
Equity is common in account executive packages, especially at growth-stage and public companies, and it usually vests over about four years with a one-year cliff. A grant made before you marry can keep vesting during the marriage, which raises the same before-versus-during question as commission. A prenup can address how the pre-marriage portion of a grant is treated. Your attorney can help you tailor the language to how your specific grants vest.
Does a prenup only protect the higher earner?
No. A prenup is a shared document, and both partners get their own independent attorney with Neptune, so each side has someone looking out for them. A good agreement often protects the lower earner too, by spelling out support and by making sure both people understand a compensation plan that can be genuinely hard to follow. The goal is a clear, fair agreement both of you helped shape.
What if my commission gets clawed back later?
Some plans reclaim commission if a customer churns or a deal is unwound. A prenup can address the downside as well as the upside, including how a clawback on commission paid during the marriage is handled between you. Bringing your actual plan documents to your attorney helps them write terms that fit how your clawbacks work.
How much does a prenup with Neptune cost?
Neptune charges a flat fee of $5,000 per couple, and that covers two independent attorneys, one for each partner. There is no hourly billing and no payment required to get started. Rush pricing applies when the wedding is within 45 days. Turnaround is typically around 3 to 4 weeks when both partners use Neptune attorneys, though this can vary.
Ready to get started?
Two independent attorneys. One flat fee. No payment required to begin.
Start your prenup