Counting Down to #11 in Military Divorce Mistakes
In “Part 5” of military divorce mistakes, I talked about exchanging assets for pension distributions. If you or your spouse is a military member please do not use this brief summary as an advice guide. Every case is different. Seek the advice of an experienced family divorce attorney in person who can review your personal situation. Today, I’ll continue going down the list of definite “don’ts” associated with those serving in the military and divorce.
Top 15 Tampa Military Divorce Pitfalls
Continuing the list at #11, the most commonly made costly divorce errors to be avoided when seeking a military divorce.
11. Do not forget that there are legal reasons to defend your right to retain more than 50% of your military pension. There are several reasons why there may need to be a defense of the military pension, including but not limited to:
- The order to distribute pension was served without jurisdiction under FSPA (Uniformed Services Former Spouses’ Protection Act.) [1]
- The military member can’t work because of a bona fide disability. If the member is rated at 50% disability but is having trouble getting a job (unemployed) and he needs the pension to survive on, the courts have discretion to refuse to award the non-military spouse the portion of the regular pension needed to support the veteran.
- The military member may simply decide to retire after 10 years of service instead of 20, cutting the spouse’s pension distribution in half when he retires.
- The military member resides in an area where they do not divide military pensions. (Puerto Rico)
- The military member is dead. There is no pension.
Next on Tampa Military Divorce
In part 7 of this series, I explain pension insurance issues as I continue counting down the treacherous list of “don’ts” when considering a Tampa military divorce. If you are thinking of a divorce with military concerns, consult with a lawyer who has experience in collaborative divorce, mediation, and traditional adversarial divorce so you can receive insight on which type of divorce may be right for you. Seek out Tampa divorce attorneys with the knowledge you need. Seek out S. David Anton of Anton Legal Group.
David Anton is a third generation Tampa Bay attorney who has handled all aspects of dissolution actions since 1985.
To schedule your military divorce consultation, call the Anton Legal Group at 813-443-5249.