A Military divorce involves certain issues and laws that differ from a civilian divorce. It is important for a military member to hire an attorney who has a good working knowledge of the military system.
Due to my office location (about 5 miles from Mayport Naval Air Station), I have the pleasure of representing members of the United States Navy on a frequent basis.
One of the most challenging issues in a military divorce is how to arrange appropriate time-sharing (this is the term that replaced custody and visitation) taking into consideration the member’s deployment. In civilian cases this is typically not an issue as both parents usually live in the same vicinity throughout the year.
Accommodations should be negotiated to provide the member adequate time with the children upon return from deployment. Also, while deployed consistent contact between the member and the children via phone (when available) and email is critically important so that a healthy bond is maintained.
A good divorce attorney needs to be familiar with the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (formerly the Soldiers and Sailors Relief Act). This Act provides certain protections to a military member when they cannot participate in the divorce case due to their service requirements. This issue typically comes up when a non-member tries to proceed with a divorce from a member who is deployed or fighting a war in a foreign country.
Knowledge on how military retirement benefits are dealt with in a Florida divorce case is important. There is a lot of confusion on entitlement to these benefits.
Florida law provides that retirement benefits earned during the marriage are to be equitably distributed (this usually is 50/50). However, this is not the same as saying the non-member receives 1/2 of the entire retirement benefit which the member receives upon retirement. Often times the member was enlisted prior to the marriage and/or will provide service after the divorce which would be considered non-marital.
It should be noted that if the member and non-member are married for at least 10 years during which time the member served in the military, then the non-member can receive direct pay from the military. Anything less than 10 years does not qualify.
Entitlement to survivor benefits is another issue that has to be dealt with in a military divorce. Many members do not want survivor benefits awarded to their non-member spouse as it lowers the net amount they will receive. Also, once elected, the member cannot elect a future spouse. Given the dangers that come with serving in the military, some non-members want the protection that survivor benefits provide. There is no automatic right to survivor benefit coverage so this issue sometimes has to be decided by the court.
Copyright © 2009 Steven A. Leitman
Original posting on 904Divorce.com
