Legal Question in Family Law in Nevada

When divorced in 1990 I was to get a % of my husbands pension. When I contacted the pension administrators they denied me because the court order wasn't written in compliance with their rules. My attorney was notified about this before I signed the final papers. The settlement would of been different if I would of known I wasn't going to get anything. What should I do? I am in NV and the divorce took place in CA. Do I sue my attorney for his error? Can the court order be corrected so it is in compliance with United Airlines pension fund regulations? Do I sue the pension fund? How do I find out how much money is involved so I can determine if it is worth my time and lawyer investment?


Asked on 1/04/10, 3:12 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Jeffrey Cogan Jeffrey A. Cogan, Esq., Ltd.

The statute of limitations has run on your attorney for malpractice. Yes, a court order needs to be entered. It is called a Qualified Domestic Relations Order or QDRO. You can look online to get more information. A QDRO will always have to entered after a Decree to get the retirement. I would charge you One Thousand Dollars to get you your retirement. I am in Las Vegas but also admitted in California. You might be able to call United to see how much you get.

You have two issues that could cause you not to get money is if your ex husband passed away and he did not have the Joint and Survivor option on his plan. The other problem you have is that United went through a bankruptcy and a part of it was to change the pension obligations. I remember that they dumped the old obligations on the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation, which is like the FDIC in that the government takes over the pension plan. If there are additional problems relating to the Bankruptcy, I would charge you more to resolve but I just don't know right now.

You may email me at [email protected]

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Answered on 1/10/10, 4:58 pm
Marshal Willick Willick Law Group

The prior answer is correct, insofar as what you will need ultimately is a QDRO. It is uncertain from your question, however, if the underlying divorce decree will also need further amendment (and therefore litigation). Any coiurt orders to be entered would be entered in California.

My firm does have a flat-fee order-generating service we offer (see the QDRO/Retirement Order page of our firm web site, posted at http://www.willicklawgroup.com/qdro_retirement_orders. But you will need CA counsel to actually enter the order in California.

You should look over the large number of articles we have posted dealing with matters relating to retirement and survivorship issues, on our Published Works page, at http://www.willicklawgroup.com/published_works. Good luck!

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Answered on 2/02/10, 7:11 pm


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