One of the most often overlooked issue in a divorce case is the issue of retirement plans and pensions. Retirement plans & pensions in a Kentucky divorce need a QDRO – a Qualified Domestic Relations Order. If you’re going through a divorce and either party has a retirement or pension plan such as 401K, IRA(s), Kentucky Teachers Retirement System (TRS), The Kentucky Public Pensions Authority (KPPA), Military Retirement, FERS, The Kentucky Employee Retirement System (KERS), the Kentucky County Employees Retirement System (CERS) the Kentucky State Police Retirement System (SPRS), or union pension the plan is going to require special documents known as a Qualified Domestic Relations Order or QDRO.
Retirement investments and pensions are considered marital assets just like any other form of property. The same rules apply to these as would apply to any other form of asset or liability in a divorce. The assets in question must be addressed as part of the property division orders in your divorce case. The central question will be: is this asset marital property, separate property or a combination of the two (commingled)?
If a retirement account or pensions is in whole or in part considered to be a marital asset in a divorce, then retirement plans & pensions in a Kentucky divorce need a QDRO. The QDRO is a detailed document that basically tells the retirement agency how to divide the asset per the orders of the Court in a divorce.
The court may provide a judgment for your share of the retirement asset as part of the property settlement, however, that alone will not complete the division of the account and protect tax status.
My name is John Schmidt, and as an experienced divorce and family law attorney with more than 25 years of experience I can tell you that even though the court approves your documents, the company administering the plan can and will easily reject it, and you are back to basically square one.
This is not something a person should try to do on their own, and most plans are quite challenging to work with. It doesn’t cost you anything to contact us and have a quick conversation about your unique circumstances and what will be required.
A QDRO is a very complex document that must be customized to meet the requirements of the specific plan and the company or government agency who is administering it. Each agency or company usually has its own unique QDRO and language. The Law Offices John Schmidt & Associates PLLC must ensure that every detail in these documents is meticulously accurate.
Retirement plans & pensions in a Kentucky divorce need a QDRO. The failure to properly address retirement plans and pensions in your divorce and/or create and file the associated QDRO can literally cost you tens of thousands and in many cases hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Are you concerned about retirement plans and pensions in a divorce in Shepherdsville, Mount Washington, Shelbyville, Taylorsville, Radcliff, Elizabethtown, Jeffersontown or Louisville, Kentucky? We invite you to contact us via e-mail, schedule an appointment or call us today at (502) 509-1490 to get answers to your questions and to learn more about your unique circumstances and how to protect what is most important to you in your family law case.
