It's the court ruling that could change divorce laws as we know them, after one woman won a victory over a prenup that she says she was tricked into signing. INSIDE EDITION talks to the happy divorcee.
A mother of three has won an historic battle to throw out her prenup that she says she was tricked into signing. In an INSIDE EDITION exclusive, Elizabeth Petrakis tore it up.
"This is the pre-nup that destroyed my life, destroyed my marriage and destroyed my family," said Petrakis. "What should I do with it now? Mail it to him?"
Elizabeth Petrakis married New York real estate mogul Peter Petrakis in 1998, but behind the romance of her lavish wedding day, a family drama was under way.
She says Peter Petrakis threatened to call off the wedding unless she signed a pre-nup.
"The pre-nup said everything was his before the marriage and everything was his after the marriage. I told him I wasn't signing the prenup and we are getting married," she said.
But she did sign the prenup after her husband said he would tear it up once they had children.
"We have three children together," said Petrakis.
INSIDE EDITION's Megan Alexander asked, "Did he tear up the prenup after you had children?"
"No, he never tore up the prenup," she said.
She says the pre-nup poisoned their marriage from day one. They broke up in 2007.
According to the agreement, Liz Petrakis was entitled to just $25,000 for every year they were married.
She challenged the prenup in court and made a video to demonstrate her suffering.
"If you watch those videos of me with the flashcards, you know I was desperate. I didn't want to live any more. This divorce had destroyed my life," said Petrakis.
Now, a New York appeals court has thrown out the prenup, clearing the way for a divorce settlement that could make her a wealthy woman.
Debra Opri told INSIDE EDITION, "This is a landmark case because the court is now saying, if you lie and those lies induce your future spouse to sign that agreement, the agreement is out."
Liz Petrakis has even started a business counselling women on getting divorced. And the next divorce she plans will be her own.
