Orange County Military Divorces
Attorney in Orange County for Military Divorce

If you are considering a divorce in Orange County and either you or your spouse or both of you are in the United States Military, it is advisable to have an attorney who has experience, knowledge and practice in this particular area of divorce law.  Orange County Attorney Marc E. Mitzner has that experience and can help you determine what may be your best legal options concerning a military divorce.

Why is a Military Divorce Different?

A military divorce differs from a civilian divorce in one important feature.  A military divorce permits the State Courts to divide the retirement benefits according to the Uniformed Services Former Spouse's Protection Act (USFSPA).  What this means is that the State Courts which grant the divorce may treat retirement pay as property and award up to 50 percent of that to the former spouse. USFSPA applies to all military divorces after June 25^th 1981.

This ruling applies to both male and female members of the Armed Services -whether regular or reserve members who are on active duty, or are already retired.   It applies to the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, National Guard and Reserve, the Public Health Service and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in a Court in the United States, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the Northern Marina Islands and the Trust Territory of the Pacific.

This feature permits a former spouse to receive this benefit directly from the military finance center and it is based on the number of years married concurrent with military service. Moreover, the computation of the retired pay is made based on the rank at the time of retirement, not the time of the divorce. In the divorce settlement the retired pay is classified as property not income.

The USFSPA also does not preclude the award for alimony or child support. There is one aspect that is considered troublesome for some- since it is considered property the payment continues even after the remarriage of the non-military spouse.  For a military spouse to receive retirement pay they must have served for no less than 20 years yet the marriage need only have lasted at least 10 years during which the military member performed at least 10 years of credible military service.  There is no time limit for a former spouse to make a claim against the retired pay of the former military spouse.

There are other aspects which make Orange County military divorces more complicated than civilian ones.  A few examples might be the length of the marriage during the military career as that may affect the benefits including medical case, commissary and exchange privileges and employment before or after military service as there might be the issue of dual compensation.