Military Divorce - Unique Divorce Process

Get the rules for your military divorce. See how a military divorce lawyer with knowledge of military divorce law can protect your property, custody and family rights.

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Similarity Between Civil And Military Divorce Law

There is no such thing as a pure military divorce separate from state divorce laws. Members of the military, whether active or retired, are required to use the state courts to obtain, or defend against a divorce.

An experienced military divorce lawyer, however, will advise you that under certain divorce in military situations the military retains jurisdiction over a military member's pension and disability pay and protects service men and women from default regarding a commenced divorced action. Such military caveats, and others, to regular state divorce law are embodied in what can be termed military divorce law.

A state divorce order must comply with military law in order to be effective.

Federal law does not allow a state divorce court to affect unilaterally the distribution of pension or disability funds due a member of the military in a military divorce. Federal law even supercedes the terms of a settlement agreement you might reach with your spouse on the distribution of military pension proceeds in a divorce in military situation. The Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act governs how military pension benefits are calculated and divided in a divorce in military situation. An experienced military divorce lawyer can help you sort out the complexities of pension and disability rights in a military divorce.

While federal law allows a state divorce court to award a portion of a service member's "disposable retired pay", or allows a state divorce court to look to other marital assets to offset such undistributed retirement pay, there is a specific exclusion for disability pay that a service member receives.

There are two types of disability pay: a basic military disability pay and a VA disability pay. It is important to consult with an experienced military divorce attorney to sort through the complexities of military divorce law.

A member of the military on active duty may be entitled to a stay (delay) of a divorce action while on duty and for 60 days thereafter. The purpose of the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act is to prevent a member's default in a divorce action while on active duty.

It is recommended that a military divorce lawyer be consulted if you are served with divorce papers while on active duty. There may be legitimate reasons for proceeding with the divorce despite your active status.

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