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Articles Posted in QDRO

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Better Late Than Never…but Never Late Is Better; QDROs and Laches.

In re Beeghley, ___ Fed. App’x ___, 2018 WL 3060089 (3d Cir. 2018) (unpublished)   (a) Facts: The parties were divorced in Delaware in 1995.  The trial court divided the husband’s pension and ordered the wife to prepare a DRO.  No DRO was ever signed. The husband remarried, and he…

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“Return to Sender”

Stephens v. Alliant Techsystems Corp., 714 F. App’x 841 (10th Cir. 2017) (unpublished)   (a) Facts: A husband divorced in Utah.  A Utah state court entered at least two DROs dividing retirement benefits, each time reserving jurisdiction to amend the order in the future.  The plan qualified the DROs. The…

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Retirement Benefits Not Part of the Estate in Bankruptcy (In re Lawson)

Carolyn Woodruff, JD, CPA, CVA

In re Lawson, 570 B.R. 563 (Bankr. N.D. Ohio 2017) Facts: A husband and wife filed divorce proceedings in Ohio. Among the marital assets was the husband’s defined contribution retirement plan. The parties read into the record in the Ohio action an agreement that awarded the wife 50% of the…

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When Bankruptcy is Filed Before the DRO

Carolyn Woodruff, JD, CPA, CVA

In re Jeffers, No. 14-52328,    B.R., 2017 WL 2838104 (Bankr. N.D. Ohio June 30, 2017) Facts: A husband and wife divorced in Ohio. The divorce decree awarded the wife an interest in the husband’s retirement benefits. Before a DRO was entered, the husband filed a petition in bankruptcy under Chapter…

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NFL Ex-Wives and QDROs (Garcia-Tatupu  v.  Bert  Bell/Peter  Rozelle  NFL  Player  Ret.  Plan)

Carolyn Woodruff, J.D., C.P.A, C.V.A.

Garcia-Tatupu  v.  Bert  Bell/Peter  Rozelle  NFL  Player  Ret.  Plan,  No.  CV 16-11131-DPW,     F. Supp. 3d   , 2017 WL 1398645 (D. Mass. Apr. 18, 2017) Facts: The husband, a former NFL football player, was divorced from his wife in Massachusetts in 1997. No DRO was entered at the time. The husband…

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DROs and Pension Plans (Dullea v. Pension Benefit Guar. Corp.)

Carolyn Woodruff, J.D., C.P.A, C.V.A.

Dullea v. Pension Benefit Guar. Corp., 241 F. Supp. 3d 155 (D.D.C. 2017) Background: There are two ways in which state courts can make a deferred future division of retirement benefits. The traditional method is the shared interest approach, which awards the nonowning spouse a portion of each future payment…

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Don’t Wait to Obtain a QDRO (Patterson v. Chrysler Group)

Carolyn Woodruff, J.D., C.P.A, C.V.A.

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…

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Yes, the Government CAN Ignore Your Order

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…

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When Stock Options Aren’t an Option in Divorce

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…

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