Nolo's Essential Guide to Divorce - Emily Doskow [135]
Calculating Pay ......................................................................................................................... 319
Spousal Support (Alimony) ...............................................................................................320
Enforcement of Support Orders .....................................................................................320
Medical Benefits ...................................................................................................................... 322
Dividing Property ....................................................................................................................... 324
Pensions, Insurance, and Other Benefits ....................................................................324
Military Pensions ..................................................................................................................... 324
The 10/10 Rule and the USFSPA ......................................................................................324
Dividing a Military Pension ................................................................................................326
Career Status Bonus ..............................................................................................................328
The Survivor Benefit Plan ...................................................................................................329
The Thrift Savings Plan .........................................................................................................329
Early Separation Payments ...............................................................................................329
Accrued Leave .......................................................................................................................... 330
Civil Service Rollovers ...........................................................................................................330
Life Insurance ...........................................................................................................................331
Tax Issues ..........................................................................................................................................331
Domestic Violence and Other Abuse ............................................................................332
Postdivorce Follow-Up ............................................................................................................ 333
Resources ......................................................................................................................................... 333
f you are one of the nearly 1.1 million active duty American military personnel stationed around the world-or married to someone who is-you'll be dealing with some divorce issues that don't affect civilians. You'll probably need legal counsel (see below). But before you hire an attorney, or while you're working with one, this chapter can help by explaining what the issues are, how they may affect you, and how you can make sure you're doing what you need to do.
Having one spouse in the military affects:
• where your divorce will be filed
• how support is calculated
• custody and visitation decisions, and
• pension rights and other benefits.
In all these areas, service members have certain rights and obligations that are very different from those of civilians.
Don't try this at home. Unless the service member in your family has been in the military an extremely short time and you have limited assets, you absolutely shouldn't negotiate your divorce or sign a settlement agreement without at least consulting a lawyer experienced in military divorce. Most likely, you're going to want to hire a lawyer to represent you all through the divorce. (You may be able to get some free legal help through the military; see "Resources," below.) Finally, if you are working with an attorney who does not have experience in this area, you can ask your attorney to use this chapter as a jumping-off point