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Wedlease
A wedlease is a proposed type of marital contract in which two spouses agree to a marriage of limited duration for a set period of time with renewal options.
The concept and term were introduced by a 2013 opinion piece in The Washington Post by long-time estate lawyer Paul Rampell. It has since been discussed in numerous other publications.
In the original op-ed, Rampell describes, “Here’s how a marital lease could work: Two people commit themselves to marriage for a period of years—one year, five years, 10 years, whatever term suits them. The marital lease could be renewed at the end of the term however many times a couple likes. It could end up lasting a lifetime if the relationship is good and worth continuing. But if the relationship is bad, the couple could go their separate ways at the end of the term. The messiness of divorce is avoided and the end can be as simple as vacating a rental unit.”
The wedlease was not intended to replace conventional marriage but to augment the options available to couples. Couples deeply in love may sign them and happily renew them, celebrating renewals like other couples celebrate anniversaries or even renew their vows in second or third ceremonies.
Conversely, couples with more reservations who have perhaps been married and divorced before or couples with children from prior marriages may utilize a wedlease contract as a practical way to test drive a marriage for a limited period of time while protecting themselves and their personal effects.
The introduction of the wedlease is not intended by Rampell to attack or undermine religious views of marriage. The place for a wedlease is in a secular, legal context. If couples can pick any date to terminate their marriage after they are married, then philosophically, morally and legally, Rampell argues they should be able to pick any date to terminate their marriage before they are married.
Despite the idea’s popularity, no one to date (as of October 2025) has signed a contractual, fixed-term wedlease, also known as a Premarital Agreement Limited Term (“PALT”). The only similar practice currently is that of the Iranian Muslim Nikah mut'ah, which allows for certain Muslim men to take temporary wives for a dowry under a private contract.
A couple of medical students from Yale University came close to signing a wedlease with Rampell in 2013 when the op-ed was first published, but the pressure caused them to bow out.
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Wedlease
A wedlease is a proposed type of marital contract in which two spouses agree to a marriage of limited duration for a set period of time with renewal options.
The concept and term were introduced by a 2013 opinion piece in The Washington Post by long-time estate lawyer Paul Rampell. It has since been discussed in numerous other publications.
In the original op-ed, Rampell describes, “Here’s how a marital lease could work: Two people commit themselves to marriage for a period of years—one year, five years, 10 years, whatever term suits them. The marital lease could be renewed at the end of the term however many times a couple likes. It could end up lasting a lifetime if the relationship is good and worth continuing. But if the relationship is bad, the couple could go their separate ways at the end of the term. The messiness of divorce is avoided and the end can be as simple as vacating a rental unit.”
The wedlease was not intended to replace conventional marriage but to augment the options available to couples. Couples deeply in love may sign them and happily renew them, celebrating renewals like other couples celebrate anniversaries or even renew their vows in second or third ceremonies.
Conversely, couples with more reservations who have perhaps been married and divorced before or couples with children from prior marriages may utilize a wedlease contract as a practical way to test drive a marriage for a limited period of time while protecting themselves and their personal effects.
The introduction of the wedlease is not intended by Rampell to attack or undermine religious views of marriage. The place for a wedlease is in a secular, legal context. If couples can pick any date to terminate their marriage after they are married, then philosophically, morally and legally, Rampell argues they should be able to pick any date to terminate their marriage before they are married.
Despite the idea’s popularity, no one to date (as of October 2025) has signed a contractual, fixed-term wedlease, also known as a Premarital Agreement Limited Term (“PALT”). The only similar practice currently is that of the Iranian Muslim Nikah mut'ah, which allows for certain Muslim men to take temporary wives for a dowry under a private contract.
A couple of medical students from Yale University came close to signing a wedlease with Rampell in 2013 when the op-ed was first published, but the pressure caused them to bow out.