Special Considerations In Military Divorces

When it comes to getting a divorce when one of the parties involved is in the military, the situation can be a bit complicated. Both parties should have lawyers that specialize in military divorce law, otherwise mistakes can be made that leave one party or the other in a worse situation than necessary.

Jurisdiction Issues

Where you file for divorce can make a big difference in the total benefits you may be eligible for, as different states have different laws. Also, there may be property in multiple states and the couple may not have lived in their current state long enough to have residency. All these complications make it important to have someone who understands the special issues of a military divorce handling your case.

Division of Military Benefits

It isn't as easy and uncomplicated to negotiate the division of military benefits as it is to negotiate the division of other types of joint property. There are a lot of rules involved in how this can be done, and a lawyer not familiar with them all could cause their client to lose a lot of money or get an unfair deal. The military pension, survivor benefit plan, VA waiver, thrift savings plan, and life insurance, or SGLI, all need to be discussed. Also, if the marriage has been at least 20 years long and overlaps the military career by at least 20 years, the spouse may be eligible for continued military healthcare benefits, so it may even be preferable to delay the divorce if the marriage is close to lasting for 20 years.

Stays to Slow Down Divorce

Military personnel can get a stay to delay divorce proceedings under the Servicemembers Relief Act if their duties make it so they can't appear in court or participate in the divorce proceedings. It isn't automatic, however, and requires certain circumstances to get this type of stay. This can make a military divorce take much longer than the average divorce in some cases.

A military divorce lawyer still has to help their client negotiate all the normal things typically discussed in a divorce proceeding as well, including child support, alimony and who gets the remaining property and the children. In most cases, the non-military spouse is likely to get custody of the children due to the risk of deployment of the military spouse. Sometimes a spouse will sign away the right to military benefits in order to get the other property, but this can be a costly mistake, so speak with someone familiar with military divorce law, such as Law Offices of Peter Napolitano & Wayne Hibbeler, before doing this.