Americans Split on Prenuptial Agreements, According to New Thomson West Poll

EAGAN, Minn., Feb. 14, 2008 - Would you sign a prenuptial agreement before you say, "I do"? A new survey by Thomson West, a leading legal information solutions provider, finds that Americans are evenly split on the issue, but are open to at least considering a prenup.

Forty-one percent of Americans say they might sign a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement if their spouse or partner asked them to. An equal percentage - 41 percent - said they likely would not sign an agreement. Eighteen percent said they weren't sure what they would do in such a situation.

Men are more willing than women to sign a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement - 44 percent of men said they would definitely or probably sign, while only 38 percent of women said they would.

But with half of all marriages ending in divorce, a majority of Americans appear to be willing to at least consider the idea of a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement. Only 20 percent of those surveyed said they would "definitely not" sign a prenup or postnup.

While many people associated these agreements with the rich and famous, legal experts say there are many situations where such an agreement may be prudent, including situations involving family-owned businesses and marriages where one or both spouses have children from previous marriages.

The Thomson West survey found that, when asked if they would sign a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement, American adults said:

• Yes, definitely (14%)
• Yes, maybe (27%)
• No, probably not (21%)
• No, definitely not (20%)
• Not sure (18%)

The survey used a demographically balanced sample of 1,000 American adults nationwide, and results are accurate within plus or minus 3 percent.

NOTE TO EDITORS: The survey was conducted for Thomson West by Ipsos North America and full results are available upon request.

Headquartered in Eagan, Minn., Thomson West is the foremost provider of integrated information solutions to the U.S. legal market. Thomson West is a business within The Thomson Corporation (NYSE: TOC; TSX: TOC) and was formed when West Publishing and Thomson Legal Publishing merged in June 1996. For more information, please visit the Thomson West website at west.thomson.com.

The Thomson Corporation ( www.thomson.com ) is a global leader in providing essential electronic workflow solutions to business and professional customers. With operational headquarters in Stamford, Conn., Thomson provides value-added information, software tools, and applications to professionals in the fields of law, tax, accounting, financial services, scientific research, and healthcare. The Corporation's common shares are listed on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges (NYSE: TOC; TSX: TOC).