Divorce and the Military

Situation different from standard

Military divorces can differ from standard family law cases when it comes to residence requirements for filing, obtaining process service upon an active duty spouse, compliance with military rules and regulations and dividing a military pension.

It is necessary to serve the active duty member with a summons and petition for dissolution of marriage personally in order for a court to have jurisdiction.

If the respondent is overseas or deployed, this service can be extraordinarily difficult, as it is governed by the Soldiers & Sailors Civil Relief Act. It is possible to request that military authorities serve the active duty member, but service is allowed only with the active duty member's consent.

If the member will not consent, one solution is to have the court appoint an active duty, reserve or even civilian person as a court officer to serve the papers. However, service aboard any ship or shore installation violates military regulations. Also, service in the territorial jurisdiction of many foreign nations may violate the Hague Convention.

Pursuant to the Hague Convention, it is possible and preferable to serve the summons and petition abroad by mailing the documents to the "central authority," which will then accomplish service in accordance with that jurisdiction's law. That is sufficient under most states' laws. A total of 66 countries are parties to the Hague Convention.

A recent change in federal regulations promises easier service of process on members with children, when those members are stationed overseas. Under this law, Federal agencies and the uniformed services designate officials who shall be responsible for facilitating service of legal process, regardless of the location of the members' duty station. The process must be to establish paternity or enforce a child support obligation, including medical support orders.

While each state may have different laws regarding how family law cases are to be handled and community property divided, the federal government has enacted legislation, titled the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA),