Military disability retired pay is not divisible as a property in a divorce, but Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) now can be divided as a property. If a retiree is eligible to, and elects, VA disability payments, which are non-taxable, the member must waive an equal amount of disability retired pay, which is taxable. CRDP restores the amount of waived retired pay. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) has long held that CRDP is also non-divisible, but the Defense Department Claims Appeal Board (CAB) has ruled that it is divisible as property in a divorce.
Modification of Property Settlement
Section 52-212a of the Connecticut General Statutes permits the trial court to modify the property settlement post-divorce:
- Within four months of the Judgment; or
- If both parties confer jurisdiction on the court; or
- If a party can show mutual mistake or fraud.
Division of Military Pensions
Military disability retired pay and VA disability compensation are not divisible as a property settlement. It can, however, be garnished as alimony. In Howell v. Howell, a case decided by the US Supreme Court in 2017, the Court decided that a trial judge could not order a military retiree to reimburse his former spouse for moneys lost when the retiree elects to receive non-taxable disability compensation form the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), an action which can result in a dollar-for-dollar decrease in retired pay.