Dividing an OPERS account after divorce or dissolution

Q: I'm a member of the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. How does a divorce or dissolution impact my account?

A: You must comply with the terms of the decree, which generally places no obligation or liability on OPERS. OPERS can only make payments to your former spouse in order to divide your benefit or refund, provided OPERS has received and approved a Division of Property Order. Your divorce or dissolution decree also may require you to elect a joint survivor annuity at retirement, naming your former spouse as a beneficiary.

Q: What is a DPO?

A: A DPO is a court order that permits OPERS to make payments directly to your former spouse during your lifetime and when you receive a benefit or payment that is subject to the DPO. The DPO terminates when either party dies regardless of whether your former spouse has begun receiving payments. The DPO allows OPERS to allocate the tax liability to you and your former spouse for your respective payments.

A DPO does not, however, create a separate account for your former spouse. Your former spouse only receives payment from OPERS if you apply for and receive a benefit or payment that is subject to the DPO. The terms of the DPO dictate which type(s) of payment(s) such as age and service retirement, disability, or refund are subject to the DPO and the method of payment (either dollar or percentage).

Q: How can I get a DPO?

A: You must use the most recent version of the standard DPO form, which is available at www.opers.org/forms. You cannot alter the DPO form, and you must file it in an Ohio court. The clerk of courts must send a certified copy of the filed DPO to OPERS. OPERS will review the DPO to determine whether it meets Ohio's DPO requirements. If it does not meet the requirements, OPERS will file a Notice of Non-approval within 60 days after receiving the DPO. As a courtesy OPERS will review your proposed DPO for preapproval before you file it with the court.

Q: How is a DPO different from a member's obligation to elect a JSA at retirement?

A: Parties often confuse DPOs with an obligation to elect a JSA at retirement. A JSA is different from a DPO, and you may be responsible for meeting the obligations of only one or both of them depending on your divorce or dissolution terms. A JSA gives your former spouse a monthly survivor benefit following your death as long as you were retired before death. If you are required to elect a JSA at retirement, you will receive a reduced monthly benefit for your lifetime. Also your former spouse will receive a monthly benefit following your death in the percentage specified in the decree of divorce/dissolution.

Q: How is a JSA obligation established?

A: A JSA obligation is established through your decree or court order. The order must provide the whole percentage for which you must designate your former spouse as a beneficiary. Either party may send OPERS a complete copy of the order imposing this obligation. It must be received prior to your retirement in order for OPERS to ensure you comply with the order and designate your former spouse as beneficiary in the whole percentage outlined in the order. If the order specifies that you are required to elect a JSA at retirement but does not provide a whole percentage, OPERS cannot process your retirement application until OPERS receives a clarifying order providing the whole percentage.

Q: Is my former spouse's share as a beneficiary under a JSA affected if I remarry after naming him/her as the beneficiary when I retire? Does it matter if the remarriage is before or after my retirement?

A: If you designate a former spouse as beneficiary under a joint and survivor annuity at retirement and then you remarry, there is no change to your prior election, and your former spouse will remain the beneficiary under the JSA.

If you remarry before you retire and OPERS has received a copy of the decree/court order requiring you to elect a JSA at retirement, then you must follow the court order and designate your former spouse. You also may name your current spouse under the Multiple Life Plan unless your current spouse provides written consent waiving his/her right to be the beneficiary on the JSA.

Q: Where can I get more information about OPERS accounts and divorce?

A: For more information about how divorce impacts OPERS accounts, consult The OPERS Member Guide to Domestic Relations Issues. Go to the OPERS website at www.opers.org/publications (click on “Members”).

This “Law You Can Use” column was provided by the Ohio State Bar Association. It was prepared by Laura E. Parsons, associate counsel at the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. The column offers general information about the law. It is not intended as legal advice. Seek an attorney's advice before applying this information to a legal problem.