Government retirement plans are not subject to QDRO rules. Instead, federal, state and local government plans have their own set of special rules regarding the division of retirement assets.
For many government plans, the parties are required to prepare a Court Order Acceptable for Processing (“COAP”). The COAP will divide Federal Employees Retirement System (“FERS”) benefits and Civil Service Retirement System (“CSRS”) benefits. A similar document will divide Thrift Savings Plan (“TSP”) benefits.
For other government plans, especially municipal plans, form agreements and form orders must be filled out in order to divide benefits.
When orders and agreements to divide government retirement benefits do not conform to plan guidelines and requirements, parties to a divorce or legal separation will waste time and money. Further, the parties may be unable to divide plan assets/benefits or may fail to address important future events that impact plan benefits, such as early retirement, cost of living adjustments, subsidized benefits, remarriage, death or disability.
Entrust the drafting of your COAPs and other orders and form agreements to our experts. We will have your orders (and applicable form agreements) prepared within one week of receiving the necessary documents to begin work or we will not charge you for our services. In addition, we will send you instructions on submitting your orders and applicable form agreements to the appropriate government entity for processing. Contact us with questions at (303)863-0777