QDRO Process Flow

1. Intake

Attorneys may complete our QDRO Request Form which lists the information we need, and fax, email, mail, or upload the information to us. If we are missing any information we will follow up until we receive it. (If you are not an attorney, please download and read our Non-Attorney Disclosure. We are not attorneys, and strongly recommend working with counsel throughout the QDRO process.) 

• Fax: 978.600.1487

• Email: info@pensionappraisals.com

• Mail: 500 West Cummings Park, Suite 2500, Woburn, MA 01801

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2. Parties' Approval

After reviewing your documents, we will contact you to confirm our assumptions and ensure we uphold the intent of the parties' Separation Agreement.

3. Plan Research / Drafting

Each plan has its own rules on what they will accept to divide the retirement asset, and we contact them to determine their requirements. 

We will advise you if we require any further documentation. In the event that you have any of the following items, please provide them with your initial submission; this may expedite the process.

• Any additional participant-specific plan information (i.e., balances for use in offset, etc.)

• Model QDRO Language

• Written QDRO Procedures

• Summary Plan Description

• Plan/TPA contact information
  
  

We draft the QDRO to:

• Uphold the intent of the separation agreement / divorce decree

• Address details such as loans, gain/loss, or pre- and post-retirement survivor benefits

• Contain all of the personal information the plan needs

• Conform to the plan rules

• Conform to federal and state law

• Contain all of the information the Court requires.

QDROs for private plans are subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Retirement Equity Act (REA) of 1984, and state laws. Government pension plans (for military, police, teachers, etc.) each have their own set of laws.

4. Plan Administrator Preapproval

Once the QDRO is drafted, and after a thorough internal review, we send a copy to the plan administrator for their preapproval (if they allow it), so the plan can look at the document before it goes through the court system. We will follow up with them until they provide a letter stating that the draft QDRO has been preapproved, and that the plan will divide the retirement asset accordingly, once they receive a certified copy.

5. Parties' Signatures

From here, our job is done. We send the final draft QDRO to the attorneys, and they coordinate parties' signatures as necessary.

6. Filing QDRO with the Court

The attorneys will submit the signed QDRO to the court. The judge then approves and signs it, and the attorney requests a certified copy with raised seal. 

7. Filing the Certified Copy of the QDRO to the Plan

The attorneys then submit the certified copy (with raised seal), along with private addendum, to the plan administrator, and the plan formally approves it and accepts it as a qualified order.

8. Disbursement

The plan administrator then executes it immediately or keeps it on file until benefits commence. The plan contacts the parties directly for disbursement. The alternate payee needs to follow up with the plan directly to ensure that they have received the certified copy, and to complete any further forms required in order to arrange for distribution.

Calculations - General Policy

As a neutral party, if requested, we may provide calculations for your approval in order to facilitate the QDRO process (marital coverture calculation, retirement account offset calculation, etc.). Please note that our expertise is within the drafting of QDRO documents. We cannot confirm the validity of statements received or that our calculations (or calculations provided by the parties) include the full extent of the intended accounts to be divided. Some statements may not clearly indicate all information such as vesting status, and pre- or post-tax contribution allocation, and so we defer to your direction/advice. Please review any calculation provided by us carefully to ensure that it is in accordance with your agreement. We suggest seeking a different financial professional expert for calculations if further expertise is required in this part of the process. If the intent is for both sides to review all statements, we suggest copying opposing counsel when sending to us, as we do not facilitate the sharing of these documents for privacy purposes.  The most streamlined approach, whenever possible, is to include an agreed-upon dollar amount in the parties' separation agreement or when requesting the QDRO preparation.

Offset Calculations
One common option is to use the minimum number of QDROs to effectuate an offset. In our experience, attorneys and courts have generally found this to be a reasonable means of equalization, as it may be more efficient in both time and money for the parties involved. Please note with this approach, the QDRO would be specific to one account, and the gain/loss assigned in that QDRO is also specific to that account. The nature of performing an offset with one QDRO assumes that any differences in actual gain/loss between the individual accounts and the account being divided are acceptable to the parties. An alternative would be a separate QDRO for each retirement account.

There are some factors to consider, including what types of retirement assets are being divided: defined contribution plans, defined benefit (pension) plans, pre-tax or post-tax (Roth), types of investments (liquidity), etc. As QDRO drafters, we can’t advise as to what is best for each unique situation. The parties may want to consult a financial advisor/tax expert to arrive at a plan that works best for them, whether that means offsetting some or all retirement assets.