Patterson v. Chrysler Group, LLC, 845 F.3d 756 (6th Cir. 2017) Facts: A divorce decree awarded the wife an interest in the husband’s retirement and survivor benefits, expressly ordering him not to elect a survivor beneficiary other than the wife. The wife did not obtain a QDRO. Upon retirement, the…
Walsh v. Dively, 551 B.R. 570 (W.D. Pa. 2016) Facts: When husband and wife were divorced in Pennsylvania, they agreed that the wife would receive 50% of the husband’s retirement. The agreement was incorporated into the divorce decree, but no DRO was entered. The wife then filed for Chapter 7…
State Farm Life & Assurance Co. v. Goecks, F. Supp. 3d , 2016 WL 1715205 (W.D. Wis. 2016) Facts: A Wisconsin divorce decree provided: The respondent [Gary] shall be required to maintain the petitioner [Sharon] as the primary, irrevocable beneficiary on one third of the face value of all his…
Family Chiropractic Sports Injury & Rehab Clinic, v. Comm’r, T.C. Memo. 2016-10, 2016 WL 234515 (2016) Facts: Husband and wife operated a chiropractic The practice had an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (“ESOP”). Husband and wife were the only participants. The parties were divorced in Iowa. The decree was silent on…
Dahl Aerospace Employees’ Ret. Plan of Aerospace Corp., 122 F. Supp. 3d 453 (E.D. Va. 2015) Facts: A Virginia divorce decree, incorporating a settlement agreement, gave each spouse the option to elect survivor benefits under the retirement plan of the other. This provision was not immediately stated in a DRO…
Carolyn Woodruff, a North Carolina CPA and Family Law Specialist, frequently is faced in sending a divorce client in the right direction after receiving a retirement plan in a divorce settlement. Here are her thoughts on the subject: The recipient may be receiving generally one or more of three…
VanderKam v. VanderKam, 776 F.3d 883 (D.C. Cir. 2015) (a) Facts: Before the parties were divorced, the wife was the death beneficiary of the husband’s retirement plan. The parties were divorced in Texas. Their divorce decree was silent on survivor benefits, but awarded the husband all rights existing because of his employment. After…
Yale-New Haven v. Nicholls, 788 F.3d 79 (2d Cir. 2015) (a) Facts: A husband and wife were divorced in Connecticut in 2008. The divorce decree incorporated a settlement agreement, which provided that the husband would transfer to the wife half of the marital share of his retirement benefits. No QDRO was entered…
I.R.C. § 414(p) and 29 U.S.C. § 1056 Morris v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 751 F. Supp. 2d 955 (E.D. Mich. 2010) (a) Facts: When the husband and the wife were divorced, the state court divorce decree extinguished all rights held by one in any life insurance of the other. …