Guest jcarly Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 I was divorced in Oregon in 1995. I am just now filing a QDRO. I am a resident of New Jersey (6years). My ex-husband is a resident of Montana and Florida (6 months of a year each). The plan administrator is in Florida. In which State do I file the QDRO? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbozek Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 I was divorced in Oregon in 1995. I am just now filing a QDRO. I am a resident of New Jersey (6years). My ex-husband is a resident of Montana and Florida (6 months of a year each). The plan administrator is in Florida. In which State do I file the QDRO? What is the document that you are requesting a court to enforce? Is it an OR divorce decree? If it is a DRO then your attorney should be able to determine where it is filed. Is the QDRO for a defined benefit plan? Has your spouse remarried? mjb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jcarly Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 I was divorced in Oregon in 1995. I am just now filing a QDRO. I am a resident of New Jersey (6years). My ex-husband is a resident of Montana and Florida (6 months of a year each). The plan administrator is in Florida. In which State do I file the QDRO? What is the document that you are requesting a court to enforce? Is it an OR divorce decree? If it is a DRO then your attorney should be able to determine where it is filed. Is the QDRO for a defined benefit plan? Has your spouse remarried? The QDRO is being filed pertaining to the marital settlement of the divorce decree. The QDRO is for a defined benefit plan. I am trying to draft the QDRO myself based on the model sent to me by the plan administrator. I am trying to save the money I would have to pay an attorney. I do have Pre Paid Legal though and I could call them and ask the question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbozek Posted June 7, 2011 Share Posted June 7, 2011 I was divorced in Oregon in 1995. I am just now filing a QDRO. I am a resident of New Jersey (6years). My ex-husband is a resident of Montana and Florida (6 months of a year each). The plan administrator is in Florida. In which State do I file the QDRO? What is the document that you are requesting a court to enforce? Is it an OR divorce decree? If it is a DRO then your attorney should be able to determine where it is filed. Is the QDRO for a defined benefit plan? Has your spouse remarried? The QDRO is being filed pertaining to the marital settlement of the divorce decree. The QDRO is for a defined benefit plan. I am trying to draft the QDRO myself based on the model sent to me by the plan administrator. I am trying to save the money I would have to pay an attorney. I do have Pre Paid Legal though and I could call them and ask the question. Well if your ex remarried you may lose some or all of the benefits you could have been awarded in 1995. Why did you wait 16 years to file for the QDRO? As for filing on your own, dont even think about it. You need a lawyer who knows QDROs to figure out in what state you need to file the DRO. You may be able to submit the DRO in NJ if you can get the divorce decree admitted as a judgment in that state. You could then have the NJ court approve the DRO. As it is you will need a lawyer to determine if any of your rights to plan benefits have been foreclosed because of the passage of time, remarriage of your ex or his retirement. mjb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jcarly Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 I was divorced in Oregon in 1995. I am just now filing a QDRO. I am a resident of New Jersey (6years). My ex-husband is a resident of Montana and Florida (6 months of a year each). The plan administrator is in Florida. In which State do I file the QDRO? What is the document that you are requesting a court to enforce? Is it an OR divorce decree? If it is a DRO then your attorney should be able to determine where it is filed. Is the QDRO for a defined benefit plan? Has your spouse remarried? The QDRO is being filed pertaining to the marital settlement of the divorce decree. The QDRO is for a defined benefit plan. I am trying to draft the QDRO myself based on the model sent to me by the plan administrator. I am trying to save the money I would have to pay an attorney. I do have Pre Paid Legal though and I could call them and ask the question. Well if your ex remarried you may lose some or all of the benefits you could have been awarded in 1995. Why did you wait 16 years to file for the QDRO? As for filing on your own, dont even think about it. You need a lawyer who knows QDROs to figure out in what state you need to file the DRO. You may be able to submit the DRO in NJ if you can get the divorce decree admitted as a judgment in that state. You could then have the NJ court approve the DRO. As it is you will need a lawyer to determine if any of your rights to plan benefits have been foreclosed because of the passage of time, remarriage of your ex or his retirement. We/I did not know that we/I needed one as our divorce was amicable and we spelled out that I would get 50% of any retirement benefits/pensions/military or otherwise. I have been collecting the military benefit and did not have to file any such paperwork to enable it. We both turned 65 this year and I believe that he has just started collecting it. I have had a 2 year long serious illness and spine surgeries so I just could not attend to this prior to this time. Now I realize that it would have been so much easier to file the correct paperwork at the time of the divorce, for no other reason than he was feeling much more generous and willing to make my life easier than after I remarried. to that issue, our decree grants me continuing spousal support even though I have remarried....all well and good but that he is not making now what he was making then and generosity has its limits. What about the websites online that claim they will prepare a QDRO that will be acceptable to the plan administrator for $300+, but generally around $300? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K2retire Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 If your original decree awarded you half of the retirement benefits, you may already have the DRO and just need to get it qualified by the plan. But again, you need a lawyer to make sure it gets done properly. A good lawyer can make the difference between getting what you expected and getting nothing due to a technicality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbozek Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 JCarly: If your ex has commenced benefits the plan may not pay you any benefits at this time because it would violate plan terms. For example, if he is receiving benefits as a single life annuity the plan could say that under that form it does not pay benefits to another person. If your divorce decree is not specific enough to tell the plan administrator what benefits you are entitled to under his retirement plan you will need to have a DRO approved by a state court defining your benefit rights which will then be submitted to the plan. The plan administrator is not going to interpret your divorce decree to determine what benefits you are entitled to under the plan. You need a lawyer to prepare the DRO to be approved by a court in the correct state or if you ex contests your request for benefits. The $300 QDRO (if its available) only applies to simple cases. Because of the above complicaions you do not have a simple case. mjb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vebaguru Posted June 8, 2011 Share Posted June 8, 2011 To answer your first question directly: Oregon. The divorce court retains jurisdiction over the divorce, and the QDRO would be incident to the divorce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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