Kentucky Qdro Services
Offered
Drafting Qualified Domestic Relations Orders
Bonnie can be hired in one of two ways: as neutral counsel or as the co-counsel or counsel for one of the parties. If hired as neutral counsel, Bonnie acts as a fiduciary for both parties and prepares the QDRO according to the terms of the Marital Settlement Agreement and as ordered by the Court in the parties’ divorce decree. For this service, the parties usually agree in their Marital Settlement Agreement that Bonnie Baker shall serve as neutral counsel, with each party paying fifty percent (50%) of the fee to prepare the QDRO.
Drafting Orders Dividing Governmental Plans
In the legal world, the term “QDRO” tends to be a catch-all phrase for any Court Order needed to divide a retirement benefit, although “QDRO” is not the correct term for division of a governmental plan. Bonnie drafts a variety of such orders, including Military Qualifying Court Orders which divide a service member’s pension and Court Orders Acceptable for Processing which divide benefits under the Federal Employees Retirement System.
Consulting with Divorce Attorney
Bonnie assists divorce attorneys with drafting settlement language which will award the appropriate marital share of an employee’s retirement benefit to his or her spouse. She advises divorce attorneys about options concerning the division of retirement assets and drafts customized language in order to optimize the results for a client. For example, Bonnie can draft specific survivor benefit language to ensure that the spouse receiving a share of a pension will receive payments for her lifetime that will not terminate in the event of the plan participant’s death.
Reviewing QDROs
Bonnie will review QDROs drafted by other attorneys and flag any problems or discrepancies between the drafted document and the terms of the parties’ Marital Settlement Agreement.