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Retirement Benefits

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beccaann

Guest
My former spouse is getting ready to retire from the United States Federal Government. At what age may I collect my portion of the retirement? Are there any legal forms that include the exact language that OPM requires?
beccaann
Virginia

[Edited by beccaann on 06-04-2001 at 06:37 PM]
 


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NYSLaw

Guest
Pension

This issue is covered by the Family Law Act, 1995, and the Family Law (Divorce) Act, 1996. These two pieces of legislation permit a Court to serve an order (known as a 'pension adjustment order") on the trustees of the pension scheme of which either spouse is a member, requiring the scheme's trustees to pay a proportion of the pension benefits to the other spouse or for the benefit of the dependent members of the family.
Here click on Family Law Topic and Good Luck.
[email protected]

http://www.alllaw.com/
 
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beccaann

Guest
I went to alllaw and didn't find anything. Thanks anyway.
 
N

NYSLaw

Guest
Retirement

I'm sorry to hear you didn't find something that would help you in your circumstance. Remember this...

Equitable Distribution is the fair division of marital assets between husband and wife after the marriage has ended. The couple can come to an agreement on how their assets should be divided or have the court make the decision based on their attorneys' recommendations .
Either way , any division of your pension must be in the form of a domestic relations order.

Good Luck
[email protected]
 
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beccaann

Guest
Federal Retirement

Thanks. We had come to an agreement on the division of
the retirement and have a court order to that effect; however, the Office of Personnel Management will not
accept anything but very specific terminology and will distribute the retirement according to specific regulations, which is unlike distributing other retirements, specifically Social Security. The problem with this is I can't find the specific regulations specifying at what age they would distribute the retirement to me (my ex-spouse will retire at age 57). Also, I am in one state, he is in another, so the new court order would have to come from what state? There are a lot of ins and outs that at the time of the divorce we
were unaware of, and at that time the main goal was just to dissolve the marriage. All the other property has been taken care of, so this is the last remnant of business. I assume that I will have to seek out an attorney here in the state of Virginia (he is in Arizona). It's very frustrating that the OPM states that they have regulations, but I can't find them. Thanks for your help.


 
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NYSLaw

Guest
Retirement

Here is your information on Social Security:

DIVORCED SPOUSE: A person who is divorced after at least 10 years of marriage keeps certain benefit rights on the former spouse's Social Security record. To receive benefits, the divorced spouse must be at least age 62 and his/her former spouse must be entitled to (receiving) benefits.

INDEPENDENTLY DIVORCED SPOUSE: Independently divorced spouse's benefits are payable regardless of whether the former spouse has applied for benefits or has benefits withheld because he/she is working. However, he or she must be eligible for retirement benefits. To receive benefits, the divorced wife or husband must be at least age 62.

The divorced wife or husband also must have been married to the former spouse for at least 10 years and divorced for at least 2 years. The 2-year divorce requirement can be waived if the former spouse was entitled to benefits in the month before the month of divorce, but was not receiving the benefits because of work deductions.

Benefits usually cannot be paid to a remarried divorced spouse on the former spouse's record unless the latter marriage ends (whether by death, divorce, or annulment). On the other hand, benefits can be paid to a remarried divorced widow(er) if:

--He/she remarries at age 60 or later; or
--He/she remarries at age 50 and after becoming disabled. (If he/she is already entitled to disabled widow(er's) benefits and remarries, benefits can continue regardless of age.)

A divorced spouse or widow(er) who is entitled to benefits other than those on their former spouse's record cannot receive both benefits in full. For example, if a divorced spouse worked under Social Security and is entitled to higher benefits based on their own earnings, they would receive benefits based on their record only. Also, the benefits paid to a divorced spouse will have no affect on the benefit amount paid to other beneficiaries on the record.

NOTE: A divorced spouse's eligibility to Social Security benefits is not an issue that can be appealed since the regulations are set forth by Congress and the provisions are contained in the Social Security Act.

If you would like to receive an estimate of benefits you may receive as a divorced spouse, you may contact our representatives at our toll-free number, 1-800-772-1213. They may be able to provide you with this information over the telephone. If you prefer, you may visit one of our offices. You can get the address and directions to your nearest office from the Social Security Office Locator that is available on the Internet at: http://www.ssa.gov/locator/
If you need more information go to the Social Security and click on frequently Asked Questions http://www.ssa.gov/ where there are hundreds of answers.

Good Luck Girl...
[email protected]
 
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beccaann

Guest
Federal Retirement

Thanks for the information. The Federal Government makes this all as clear as mud. I'm going to check further in the Office of Personnel Management regulations and see what further information I can find. My ex said he would pay it directly to me, but is not thinking about the tax ramifications of that. It could get pretty confusing I think. Anyway, thanks for your help.
 

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