Results 1 to 7 of 7
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2012
    Posts
    9

    Default Pension Division After Divorce

    My question involves a marriage in the state of: IN
    I understand that pension is considered personal property acquired through a marriage. However, if I am ordered to pay 50% when I retire years from now, will it only be 50% of it's value at the time we separated?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Re: Pension Division After Divorce

    Pursuant to IC 31-15-7-4, Indiana applies a "one pot" principle, under which all of the parties' premarital assets are normally treated as part of their marital estate. Pursuant to IC 31-15-7-5 there's a presumption that the equal division of the parties' marital property is just and reasonable, but a court is not obligated to divide all assets equally if that presumption is successfully rebutted by one of the parties. The date of the parties' legal separation is often used as the date of valuation of the marital estate, but that can change depending on the facts. See, e.g., Quillen v. Quillen, 671 N.E.2d 98, 102 (Ind.1996) ("the trial court has discretion when valuing the marital assets to set any date between the date of filing the dissolution petition and the date of the [divorce] hearing").

    Assuming you litigate your divorce, as opposed to settling it, assuming no complicating factors such as a prior spouse who also has rights against your pension, the court would be within its rights to divide the pension equally. See, e.g., Quintero v. Quintero, an unpublished decision from 2013. Case law also supports the use of a coverture fraction to divide pension benefits, with the numerator being the number of years of marriage during which the pension accrued and the denominator being the total number of years that the pension accrued prior to valuation date. See, e.g., In re Marriage of Preston, 704 NE 2d 1093, 1098-1099 (Ind. Ct. App. 1999) in which the court applied the coverture fraction based upon the period time between the parties' marriage and their separation. In the Quintero case, the trial court was found to have erred in dividing a pension equally, where the husband had earned pension benefits for twenty-five years prior to the parties' five year marriage.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Posts
    16,474

    Default Re: Pension Division After Divorce

    Quote Quoting julbox3134
    View Post
    My question involves a marriage in the state of: IN
    I understand that pension is considered personal property acquired through a marriage. However, if I am ordered to pay 50% when I retire years from now, will it only be 50% of it's value at the time we separated?
    The simplistic answer is generally yes. However, as Mr KIA pointed out its quite complicated. The explanation that premarital assets are also included in the marital "pot" would tend to cause confusion for most people. I think that a better way to explain it is that a premarital asset in many cases would have a marital component, and therefore the marital component gets included in the marital pot.

    Right now the marital component of your pension is the amount of the pension that accrued during your marriage.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: Pension Division After Divorce

    You are assuming that the answer is always going to be the same in all situations and that the law dictates it.

    That is an incorrect assumption.

    The wording of your specific order will state how the plan is to be divided. It is not always the same in all situations. There is not one single answer that is mandated by law and applies in all situations.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Posts
    16,474

    Default Re: Pension Division After Divorce

    Quote Quoting cbg
    View Post
    You are assuming that the answer is always going to be the same in all situations and that the law dictates it.

    That is an incorrect assumption.

    The wording of your specific order will state how the plan is to be divided. It is not always the same in all situations. There is not one single answer that is mandated by law and applies in all situations.
    I don't think that he is at the point where any orders exist yet.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Massachusetts
    Posts
    24,521

    Default Re: Pension Division After Divorce

    Maybe not, but it is still true that the wording of his order when he has one will dictate. It is still true that the law does not mandate that it always be exactly the same regardless.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Posts
    16,474

    Default Re: Pension Division After Divorce

    Quote Quoting cbg
    View Post
    Maybe not, but it is still true that the wording of his order when he has one will dictate. It is still true that the law does not mandate that it always be exactly the same regardless.
    I do agree.

    1. Sponsored Links
       

Similar Threads

  1. Division of Assets: Divorce and Military Pension Division Under Former Spouse Protection Act
    By cowboys in forum Divorce, Annulment and Separation
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 02-26-2012, 05:41 PM
  2. Property Division: Division of a Pension in a Mississippi Divorce
    By miss98765 in forum Divorce, Annulment and Separation
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 03-31-2011, 08:17 PM
  3. Property Division: Division of a Military Pension in a Divorce
    By reseda in forum Divorce, Annulment and Separation
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 06-06-2010, 08:49 PM
  4. Property Division: Division Of Future Pension Benefits
    By f_flyer in forum Divorce, Annulment and Separation
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 05-18-2007, 11:51 AM
  5. Bankruptcy Issues: Discharge of pension benefits, and divorce
    By Sassy in forum Bankruptcy Law
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 01-10-2006, 03:39 PM
 
 
Sponsored Links

Legal Help, Information and Resources