Yes, if the retirement benefits are derived from wages earned during the marriage. Wages are considered to be community property and subject to division in a divorce. Each party’s deferred employment compensation in the form of a qualified pension, 401k, or IRA, is community property and must be divided. The pension division is accomplished with a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO). The QDRO orders the retirement plan administrator to distribute a specified percentage of the participant-spouse’s benefit to the alternate payee-spouse.
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