Arizona Military Divorce Laws
Arizona Military Divorce Information
When looking for Arizona military divorce information or specifically how Arizona applies the USFSPA in a military divorce, several cases (stated below) repeatedly arise in decree discussions.
Arizona courts have held that military retirement pay is divisible as community property between the service member and military spouse. (Arizona is also a no fault state which means both parties may date while divorce is pending.)
Arizona has interesting law cases concerning a satisfactory meeting of the former spouses interest in the military retired pay property settlement when the service member wishes to continue working.
Arizona recognizes that should the service member continues working, a former military spouse would never receive the court ordered entitlement. This issue is also raised in Military Divorce Tips along with possible ideas for a solution.
Military Divorce Cases Setting Precedent in Arizona
The following are Arizona court cases with some highlights of divorce issues:
- 1977 Van Loan v. Van Loan, 116 Ariz. 272, 569 P.2d 214; set nonvested military pension as community property
- 1979 Buttram v. Buttram,122 Ariz. 581, 582, 596 P.2d 719, 720 (1979): Increased spousal maintenance cannot justify depriving a spouse of his or her property right.
- 1980 In re Marriage of Foster,125 Ariz. 208, 608 P.2d 785 (App. 1980): property division and spousal maintenance are two separate and distinct considerations at dissolution.
- 1983 DeGryse v. DeGryse, 135 Ariz. 335, 661 P.2d 185
- 1984 Edsall v. Superior Court of Arizona, 143 Ariz. 240, 693 P.2d 895
- 1984 Haynes v. Haynes,148 Ariz. 191, 195, 713 P.2d 1249, 1253.
- 1986 Koelsch v. Koelsch, 148 Ariz. 176, 713 P.2d 1234; civilian retirement plan case where the court ordered that ex-spouses must begin receiving their portion of divided property when the employee becomes eligible for retirement, regardless of whether he or she actually retires
Note: This page will be edited as more case information and links becomes available.
You can contribute additional 2013 Arizona military divorce information (or prior years) using our submission form.
You can list all the case laws decisions you want – all those do NOT make the division of military retired pay any bit “legal” ! – We know the the USFSPA is a DISPICABLE and UNCONSCIONABLE F-R-A-U-D ! ! ! If the clowns that wrote the USFSPA law had any brains, they would NOT have let it get out the door ! The USFSPA is an UNCONSTITUTIONAL slap in the face of everyone who has EVER served in the US Military !
Readers have asked for more state related information. We plan to add more posts with state laws over the next few months.
One solution I can suggest for readers (who have reactions such as yours) would be to consider unsubscribing and then re-subscribing after all the state cases have been posted. This way you will not be hit with weekly emails reminding you how military retired pay is divisible.
You can also help speed up this process by submitting information about your state military divorce laws.
I beg to differ with you as would members of my immediate family. I was married to military, and raised in the military in the 50’s and 60’s. So, I have been around the “military block ” and know military life. A spouse does a lot to keep a military community together and gives up a lot to follow the military member. By the way, athletes share their retirement, company employees share theirs, most all entities do, and many at bigger percentages than required by USFSPA. P.S. You must really hate a former spouse.
Well said ma’am