DIVORCE
AND THE MILITARY Military divorces can differ from standard
family law cases when it comes to residence requirements
for filing, obtaining process service upon an active duty
spouse, compliance with military rules and regulations,
and the division of a military pension.
It is necessary to personally serve the active duty member
with a summons and petition for dissolution of marriage
in order for a court to have jurisdiction.
If the respondent is overseas or deployed, this service
can be extraordinarily difficult as it is governed by
the soldiers and sailors act. It is possible to request
that military authority serve the active duty member,
but service is allowed only with the active duty member's
consent.
If the member will not consent, one solution is to have
the court appoint an active duty, reserve, or even civilian
natural person as an officer of the court to serve the
papers. However, service aboard any ship or shore installation
violates military regulations. Also, service in the territorial
jurisdiction of many foreign nations may violate the Hague
Convention.
Pursuant to the Hague Convention, it is possible and
preferable to serve the summons and petition abroad by
mailing the documents to the "central authority" who will
then accomplish service in accordance with the law of
that jurisdiction, which is sufficient under most states
law. Over 30 countries are parties to the Hague Convention.
A recent change in federal regulations promises easier
service of process on members with children when those
members are stationed overseas. Under this law, Federal
agencies and the uniformed services to designate officials
who shall be responsible for facilitating service of legal
process, regardless of the location of the members' duty
station. The process must be to establish paternity or
enforce a child support obligation, including medical
support orders.
While each state may have different laws regarding how
family law cases are to be handled and community property
divided, the federal government has enacted legislation
titled The Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection
Act (USFSPA) that governs the calculation and division
of military pension benefits.
This
Article Divorce
and the Military was
written by Aaron
Dishon; Copyright Dishon
& Block, APC.
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