Jackson v. Sollie

In the divorce proceeding of Husband and Wife, Husband argued that the marital portion of his Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) pension should be reduced in order to reflect an offset for the amount of Social Security benefits he would have been entitled to had he not participated in the CSRS. The circuit court rejected Husband’s argument and ordered the retirement plans to be divided so that each party would receive fifty percent of the marital share of the other party’s retirement plan. The Court of Appeals vacated the judgment of the circuit court, holding (1) when dividing marital assets in a divorce proceeding, a trial court is preempted by federal law from dividing hypothetical Social Security benefits by way of an offset; but (2) a court may take into consideration the parties’ anticipated Social Security benefits as a relevant factor under Md. Code Ann. Fam. Law 8-2015(b) in adjusting the equities and rights of the parties in marital property. Remanded. View "Jackson v. Sollie" on Justia Law