Recent Cases Regarding Division of Military Retired Pay When the Servicemember Elects to Receive Disability Compensation

摘要

Family law practitioners should understand that the Uniformed Services Former Spouses' Protection Act (USFSPA) permits states to divide servicemembers disposable military retired pay2 as marital property in a divorce and to pay a portion of that disposable retired pay to the members' former spouse. For example, a court order might provide that the former spouse is entitled to fifty percent of the servicemember's disposable military retired pay as part of a property division pursuant to a divorce. In this simple scenario, assuming the servicemember's disposable retired pay is $2,000 per month, the court-ordered division requires the servicemember to pay $1,000 per month to the former spouse.