A person who is tired of dealing with a spouse may long for the days following their divorce, when he or she is seemingly free from having to be bothered with the other person. However, an ex-spouse can easily steal a person’s joy by withholding payments in the areas of alimony or child support in Georgia. Not receiving these court-ordered payments can be vexing, causing a person to feel unsettled even after the ink has long dried on the divorce papers. However, getting an ex-spouse to finally make these payments is possible with further help from a judge.
Specifically, a qualified domestic relations order, also known as a QDRO, can make this happen. This is a court order that recognizes that a certain individual has the right to receive alimony and other benefits in a retirement plan. The judge essentially makes it a requirement that a person receive part of his or her ex-spouse’s retirement benefits.
Individual retirement accounts, or IRAs, are not included in these accessible benefits, but 401Ks or 403Bs are. This is why a QDRO may be an essential part of a person’s retirement-planning efforts. In fact, a QDRO normally is used to make sure that a spouse’s retirement benefits are equitably divided during a divorce proceeding.
Getting divorced certainly can feel liberating for an individual, but the event also can cause the person to be fearful of his or her financial future. When an ex-spouse fails to deliver the alimony or child support payments required, this can sometimes cause duress and anger. Understanding the law and learning all of one’s options in such a situation can help a person to obtain the benefits to which he or she is entitled following a divorce in Georgia.
Source: Forbes, How To Get Your Ex-Husband To Honor The Financial Terms Of Your Divorce Settlement, Jeff Landers, Feb. 19, 2014
