QDRO - domesticating a Canadian divorce for purposes of executing a QDRO

Hello - my ex-wife and I are both American, but live in Canada (Ontario) as permanent residents.  We were divorced last year and, in our separation agreement, agreed to split my pension.  As I understand it, we now need to domesticate our divorce in the US, and then file the QDRO, referencing that domesticated decree.  I'm looking for a lawyer in the US that is familiar and experienced in domesticating an Ontario divorce.  It should be as simple as domesticating an Ontario divorce order that contains the language re the pension split, and filing the QDRO, for which my former employer provides a nice, simple template. The problem is, we don't live in the US, presently.  Would welcome any advice or referrals.  Thanks!

Sorry, no expert.  You might consider looking for a domestic relations attorney in a city near the border, such as Buffalo, Toronto, Detroit, Windsor, etc.  Attorney website might have information related to your specific need.

On ‎10‎/‎5‎/‎2020 at 3:08 PM, david rigby said:

Sorry, no expert.  You might consider looking for an domestics relations attorney in a city near the border, such as Buffalo, Toronto, Detroit, Windsor, etc.  Website might have information related to your specific need.

Totally agree. canadianlink, this is not a pension issue but a transnational domestic relations law issue.

Hi there. Were you able to resolve this? I am in  the same situation and stuck. I would really appreciate your help. I am getting runarounds even from lawyers, they don't know themselves. Thank you.

Does anyone have guidance on this? My ex and I were married in Massachusetts and I had a 403b plan through my employer (with TIAA). We eventually moved to Canada (I’m Canadian, she’s a dual citizen). In our divorce agreement, we specified splitting all accounts including the 403b account but have encountered real roadblocks getting this account split into 2. Namely, we hired a Massachusetts divorce attorney to try to get our divorce recognized with a US court and get the QDRO for account splitting but the court wouldn’t sign since neither of us resides in the US. TIAA says that nothing can be split because of this. How can we possibly resolve this? We’re at a loss since the account is substantial and we don’t want to trigger a taxable event when splitting. It’s frustrating since this seems like a matter that should be simple to resolve. Does anyone have advice on how we can get our divorce (from a Quebec Canada court) recognized in the US for this purpose. Again, neither my ex nor I are US residents (though my ex has US citizenship). Any feedback/tips would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

On 3/2/2023 at 12:46 PM, mc10101010 said:

Hi there. Were you able to resolve this? I am in  the same situation and stuck. I would really appreciate your help. I am getting runarounds even from lawyers, they don't know themselves. Thank you.

Were you able to find a way to resolve this? Thank you!

On 10/5/2020 at 1:31 PM, canadianlink said:

Hello - my ex-wife and I are both American, but live in Canada (Ontario) as permanent residents.  We were divorced last year and, in our separation agreement, agreed to split my pension.  As I understand it, we now need to domesticate our divorce in the US, and then file the QDRO, referencing that domesticated decree.  I'm looking for a lawyer in the US that is familiar and experienced in domesticating an Ontario divorce.  It should be as simple as domesticating an Ontario divorce order that contains the language re the pension split, and filing the QDRO, for which my former employer provides a nice, simple template. The problem is, we don't live in the US, presently.  Would welcome any advice or referrals.  Thanks!

Were you able to find a way to resolve this? Thank you!

To be a qualified domestic relations order (as ERISA § 206(d)(3) or Internal Revenue Code § 414(p) defines it), a court’s order must be “made pursuant to a [US] State or Tribal domestic relations law[.]” (Under both those Federal statutes, “State” is a defined term.)

If the could-be alternate payee wants to pursue a QDRO, one might proceed in a US State’s court that has subject-matter jurisdiction, and can exercise personal jurisdiction over both former spouses.

Thinking of ways to solve those jurisdiction points and other issues might be beyond the ordinary work of some domestic-relations lawyers.

To search for lawyers who might have the needed aptitudes and skills, consider https://www.aaml.org/find-a-lawyer/.

This is not advice to anyone. This is not a referral, and I have not evaluated any of these lawyers.