Jacksonville sits between three major military installations — NAS Jacksonville, NS Mayport, and Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay across the Georgia line — so military divorce is a significant part of my practice. These cases look like civilian divorces at the surface but involve a layer of federal law (USFSPA, SCRA, SGLI, SBP, TRICARE) that civilian practitioners often miss. Small mistakes — like signing a settlement that fails the 10/10 rule — can cost a former spouse tens of thousands of dollars in retirement benefits they were entitled to.
Division of Military Retired Pay
The Uniformed Services Former Spouses' Protection Act (10 U.S.C. §1408) governs the division of military retired pay in divorce. USFSPA allows state courts to treat military retirement as marital property divisible in divorce, but it imposes specific rules:
- The 10/10 rule. For a former spouse to receive their retirement share directlyfrom DFAS (the Defense Finance and Accounting Service), the marriage must have overlapped the service member's creditable service by at least 10 years. Shorter marriages can still divide the pay, but the service member pays the former spouse directly.
- The 20/20/20 rule. A former spouse whose marriage, overlap with service, and service all equal or exceed 20 years keeps TRICARE, commissary, and exchange privileges for life.
- The 20/20/15 rule. 15 years of overlap gets one year of transitional TRICARE after the divorce.
- The Frozen Benefit Rule (2017 NDAA).For divorces finalized after December 23, 2016, the former spouse's share is calculated based on the service member's rank and years of service as of the date of divorce — not the date of retirement. This change reduced former- spouse awards significantly and affects how settlement agreements should be drafted.
Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP)
A retired service member's pension ends at their death unless they are enrolled in SBP. Former spouses are eligible SBP beneficiaries — but only if SBP is elected within one year of the divorce, usually by a court order called a “Deemed Election.” Missing the one-year window generally ends the opportunity forever. This is one of the most common and costly drafting mistakes civilian attorneys make in military divorce.
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA)
The SCRA (50 U.S.C. App. §§3901–4043)provides active-duty service members with significant procedural protections against civil legal actions — including divorce. A service member on deployment can often obtain a stay of civil proceedings if they cannot participate due to military duties. Judges routinely grant 90-day stays and sometimes longer. The spouse filing for divorce should be prepared for these timelines.
BAH, BAS, and Other Allowances
Military pay includes not just base pay but allowances for housing (BAH), subsistence (BAS), clothing, and special-duty pay. For Florida child support and alimonypurposes, BAH and BAS are treated as income even though they are tax-free. The Leave and Earnings Statement (LES) is the starting point for any military income analysis, but it does not tell the whole story — bonus pay, re-enlistment bonuses, and special pays often need to be separately documented.
TRICARE
A former spouse who does not qualify for continued TRICARE under 20/20/20 or 20/20/15 loses coverage at divorce. DEERS must be updated. The Continued Health Care Benefit Program (CHCBP) offers a transitional 36-month policy the former spouse can buy into.
Deployment and Time-Sharing
Florida law specifically addresses how time-sharing works when a parent is deployed. A parent's deployment cannotbe the sole basis for permanent modification of a parenting plan. Temporary arrangements during deployment — including delegation of time-sharing to a relative such as a grandparent — are permitted and expire when the parent returns.
Jurisdiction and Residency Issues
Military families frequently face jurisdictional puzzles. A service member stationed in Jacksonville but a legal resident of another state can typically file in Florida if their spouse is a Florida resident or the service member has established Florida residency. The 50 U.S.C. §4001(a)(3) presumption lets military personnel claim domicile in the state of residence even if temporarily stationed elsewhere.
Common Settlement-Drafting Errors to Avoid
- Describing the military pension in civilian QDRO terms (the DFAS form and specific language are required)
- Failing to elect or deem SBP within the one-year window
- Using old “time rule” language after the 2017 Frozen Benefit Rule
- Not addressing disability waivers that can convert retired pay into non-divisible VA disability
- Missing the ability to offset a concurrent-receipt reduction
How I Can Help
I have represented active-duty service members, retirees, reservists, and military spouses in Florida and Georgia for over 25 years. I know the DFAS process, the SBP deadlines, the local court practice around deployment stays, and the drafting language that actually works. Call 904-858-4334 or contact me online.