Award of Portions of Husband’s Military Pension Held Void
Tennessee case summary on military benefits after divorce.
Brenda S. Harper v. William H. Harper
The husband and wife in this Montgomery County, Tennessee, case divorced in 2003, while the husband was a member of the U.S. Army. The final decree stated that the wife would receive half of the husband’s military retirement, which the husband was to pay directly to the wife. Even though the wife had requested rehabilitative alimony, none was awarded.
The parties showed up in court multiple times over the years, including in 2015. At that time, the wife filed a petition for enforcement in which she alleged that the husband was not properly computing his retirement, and was behind in payments. Nothing happened until 2018, when the husband filed an answer and counter-complaint. He alleged that he was being required to pay more than allowed.
Ultimately, the trial court ruled that the prior order on the subject, dated 2005, was void and unenforceable, and that the husband was not required to pay any portion of his veteran’s disability benefits. The wife then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. She argued that the court lacked jurisdiction to modify the order after so many years.
After concluding the appeal was timely, the appeals court turned to the merits. Under a 2017 U.S. Supreme Court case, assignment by a state court of certain military pension benefits is not permitted. The wife cited cases in which the courts had held that the distribution was proper, because it amounted to an award of money, and the mere fact that the money had originated in a military pension was not controlling. But the appeals court examined those cases and held that they were not applicable. It was, however, applicable to certain portions of the pay. Therefore, it affirmed the case, but remanded to the lower court for some modifications.
The husband argued that the appeal had been frivolous, but the appeals court ruled that it had some merit.
No. M2020–00412-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Apr. 25, 2022).
TN court’s award of portions of military pension void.
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
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