Tennessee divorce patterns in military marriages reflect unique challenges facing active duty military service members and their families, governed by the complex interplay between federal law, Tennessee state divorce laws, and military regulations. Military divorce in Tennessee involves considerations not present in civilian divorces, including deployment complications, frequent relocations, servicemembers' civil relief act protections, division of military pensions under the uniformed services former spouses protection act USFSPA, and specialized court orders affecting retirement pay and benefits for military families throughout the United States.
Military service can put significant strain on marriages, with deployment, frequent relocations, and extended separations creating challenges that civilian couples rarely face.
Military Divorce Statistics
Defense Department statistics show that military divorce rates have continued on a steady increase since 2001, with divorce rates reaching some of the highest levels in decades. Almost 30,000 military members ended their marriages in 2011. The overall divorce rate in the military is 3.7 percent, slightly higher than the 3.5 percent national divorce rate as reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control in 2009. The Army and Navy both saw their highest divorce rates since 2004, with 3.7 percent and 3.6 percent, respectively. The Air Force divorce rate reached 3.9 percent in 2011, the highest it has been in more than 20 years. The divorce rate among Marines held steady at 3.8 percent from 2010.
Factors Contributing to Military Divorce
Researchers note that the increases in the divorce rate from year to year are incremental and not particularly startling. However, they see a disturbing pattern emerging when examining the progression over a longer span of time. There is a noticeable climb in military divorce rates since 2001, the beginning of military operations in Afghanistan. Military personnel suggest that repeated deployments and increasingly longer tours of duty are having a detrimental effect on military marriages. Couples are spending more time apart, and when the service member returns home, they often no longer know how to be a couple anymore. Women seemed to be the group most prone to divorce across all branches of the military, with nearly one in 10 enlisted women divorcing in 2011.
Tennessee Residency Requirements for Military Divorce
Tennessee has specific residency provisions for military service members and their spouses that differ from standard civilian residency requirements.
Military Residency Presumptions
Any person in the armed services of the United States, or the spouse of any such person, who has been living in Tennessee for a period of not less than one year, shall be presumed to be a resident of Tennessee, and the presumption of residence shall be overcome only by clear and convincing evidence of a domicile elsewhere. Tennessee allows a member of the military to be considered a resident after one year of residency, creating unique filing opportunities for military families stationed in the state.
Jurisdictional Considerations
Military families often move frequently, which can make it hard to determine where to file for divorce. In Tennessee, you can typically file if either spouse is a legal resident or stationed in the state. Determining proper jurisdiction is critical for the court to have authority over divorce matters, including custody and property division. A military couple could have been married and raised children in one state, own property in a second state, and live on a military base in Tennessee. For most couples, it is easy to identify the state and court where they should file for divorce, but considerations for military divorce are very different.
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Protections
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act provides significant protections for active duty members facing divorce proceedings while serving their country.
90-Day Stay Provisions
One key legal protection is the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. This federal law allows active duty military members to delay divorce proceedings while deployed or otherwise unavailable due to service obligations. If your spouse is actively serving, you may need to account for these delays in your legal strategy. Another potential twist to military divorce occurs when service members are on active duty, on deployment, stationed out of the country, on a ship, or otherwise not able to show up in court due to military responsibilities. The service member can request a 90-day suspension of divorce matters based on the service member's Civil Relief Act if showing up to court hearings would conflict with their military duties.
Protection from Default Judgment
Protections such as the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act may limit a state's ability to secure a default judgment against a military service member if that service member is currently deployed or away from home for military training. Service members can also apply for a temporary stay of any civil action while they are on active duty or within ninety days from their release from active duty. Normally, if you serve someone papers and they ignore them, the court can proceed with a default judgment against the defendant. However, members of the military are protected from default judgments when they are deployed or on active duty.
Court Discretion and Abuse of Protections
However, if a court decides that a member of the armed forces has invoked this rule but is in reality simply dodging responsibilities, it can deny the request for the 90-day suspension. Establishing that can require the services of a divorce attorney well-versed in military policies and procedures, as well as Tennessee's laws concerning divorce.
Serving Divorce Papers on Military Members
One of numerous potential complications in military divorce involves the challenges of properly serving divorce papers on active duty members.
Branch-Specific Service Policies
One of a number of potential snags that can crop up in a divorce involving members of the military is that it can be difficult to serve divorce papers on them. The different branches of the military have varying policies when it comes to serving papers on members of the military. While the branches all have a vested interest in making sure service members meet their financial and legal obligations, they also want to protect their service members' rights.
Complications from Deployment and Assignment
Serving papers can get complicated when members of the military are away from home, based on temporary assignment or in a state or country that has specific laws about serving such papers that have to be respected. This can be a bit more difficult in a military divorce. If your spouse is currently deployed overseas, the process is simply going to take longer. The papers also need to be served in the official language of the country where they are serving, even if your spouse does not speak that language.
Division of Military Pensions Under USFSPA
The Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act governs how military retirement pay is divided in divorce, establishing specific requirements for spousal entitlement.
Military Retirement as Marital Property
The division of military pensions is another potentially complex issue. Since the passage of the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act USFSPA, military pensions are now considered property rather than income, and as such, a divorce court can divide it between a member of the military and an ex. Military retirement is unlike standard civilian retirement in several respects. Service members do not vest in their retirement as civilians do. Members must serve 20 years of active federal service if the member is on active duty, or serve 20 good years of service if the member is in the National Guard or Reserve.
The 10/10 Rule for Direct Payment
The military is willing to send such payments directly to the ex provided that the marriage lasted at least 10 years and that those 10 years overlapped with a minimum of 10 years' service by the service member. The 10/10 rule simply refers to who pays the former spouse when retirement checks start coming. If the parties have been married for 10 years or more and the service member served at least 10 creditable years of military service during the marriage, then the spouse's check can come directly from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service each month. If there is no overlap of 10 or more years of service with 10 or more years of marriage, the service member pays the spouse directly.
20/20/20 Rule for Full Benefits
If someone was married to a member of the armed forces for 20 or more years and the service member served for those 20 years, the spouse can be eligible for permanent medical insurance, a military ID, and other important lifelong privileges.
The 20/20/20 rule provides that the divorced spouse of a retired service member is entitled to receive the same benefits as non-divorced spouses of retired service members, so long as the spouse was married to the service member for at least twenty years, the service member served for at least twenty years, and the marriage overlapped the service for at least twenty years.
Recent Changes to the Military Pension Division
Buried in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2017 is section 641, which changed the definition of disposable retired pay under USFSPA for service members who have not yet retired at the date of divorce. The result is that the spouse's marital portion of the service member's future military retirement is fixed at the member's rank and years of service at the time of divorce. The spouse is not entitled to any share of the member's retirement accrued after the date of divorce. In effect, the USFSPA freezes the spousal benefit and creates a hypothetical retirement date as of the date of divorce.
Child Custody Challenges in Military Families
Deployment and frequent relocations create unique child custody complications for military families going through divorce.
Impact of Deployment on Custody Arrangements
Deployment and frequent relocations can complicate custody decisions. Tennessee courts prioritize the best interests of the child while also recognizing the challenges of military service. Judges may issue temporary custody modifications during deployments and include provisions to restore parenting time when service members return. A service member's parenting rights are the same as a civilian's, but there's the matter of reassignment and deployment to take into consideration.
Relocation and Parenting Plans
The courts may rule that a military parent has the right to a certain amount of parenting time while living on a nearby base, but if reassigned or deployed, this will call for important changes in the parenting schedule, and this could happen more than once in the service member's career. When developing a parenting plan, it is best to work collaboratively and think beyond the current living situation and age of your child. Circumstances change, and there may need to be subsequent modifications to an existing parenting plan, always with the best interest of the child in mind.
Tennessee Parental Relocation Statute
There is a statute in Tennessee that governs parental relocation. This statute has no exception for military service members; thus, those in the military who are required to move to conduct military service must comply with the statute just as all those with valid Tennessee parenting plans must do if they desire to relocate. Military members facing transfers must follow proper legal procedures for relocation, even when moves are mandatory due to military orders.
Child Support in Military Divorce Cases
Child support in military divorce follows Tennessee state guidelines but includes unique considerations regarding military income and enforcement.
Calculating Child Support with Military Income
Tennessee's child support laws apply to military families just as they do to civilians. Child support calculations are generally based on the amount of time each parent spends with the child and the income each parent earns. Tennessee child support calculations define income broadly, encompassing money from any source, even if unearned. Thus, military income would include Basic Allowance for Housing, Basic Allowance for Subsistence, and other military benefits. When it comes to establishing spousal support and child support, certain allowances a service member receives above and beyond base pay might not show up in a paycheck but could be counted as income.
Military Enforcement of Support Obligations
It is a requirement of the military that servicemembers support their children. There is no exception, and all branches of the military take this imposition very seriously. The military can impose its own set of punishments and ramifications on a servicemember who fails to comply with support orders from a divorce court. These punishments can include sanctions in a military court or from superior officers, including separation from the military. Military pay is subject to wage garnishment from a court order. If a court order for child support or alimony is in place, the military can enforce it by garnishing wages or taking disciplinary action for non-compliance.
Health Care and Other Benefits for Former Spouses
Military benefits, including health care, commissary privileges, and base access depend on length of marriage and service overlap.
Tricare and Medical Benefits
When it comes to health and dental insurance, the different branches of the military could allow exes and children coverage based on the length of service of the member of the military. Other benefits like health care and commissary privileges depend on the length of the marriage and service. It's crucial to know which benefits a former spouse can keep post-divorce. Spouses married for at least 10 years overlapping with 10 years of service may be eligible to receive retirement pay directly from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service.
20/20/15 Rule
Other benefits are also available to service members and their spouses upon the service member's retirement. Medical coverage through Tricare, base privileges, access to the military exchange, and commissary privileges are just a few of the benefits. Continued benefits for former spouses of military service members are protected under federal law, with specific rules determining eligibility based on length of marriage and service overlap.
Working with Experienced Military Divorce Attorneys
Military divorce requires specialized knowledge of both Tennessee family law and federal military regulations affecting service members and their families.
Importance of Specialized Legal Guidance
Going through a divorce is often a stressful and complicated matter. When one or both of the spouses is a service member, things can be even more complex, given the special laws that protect military members in civil actions, as well as the need to know how to divide military benefits in a property settlement. If you are considering divorce and have ties to the military, consult a lawyer who has experience with military divorce, who can help make the process go more smoothly.
Coordination with Military Authorities
Divorce cases, especially such cases involving a member of the military, can be extremely fact-specific. It's for this reason that nothing can take the place of discussing the matter with an attorney who is knowledgeable of civil and military rules and regulations involving divorce, separation, spousal support, and child support. The attorney should be familiar with the different branches of the military and their varying policies and guidelines on support obligations and benefit divisions.
Moving Forward with Tennessee Military Divorce
Tennessee divorce patterns in military marriages demonstrate the complex intersection of state family law, federal military regulations, and practical challenges facing service members and their families during marital dissolution.
Federal and State Law Interplay
Military divorce in Tennessee requires careful attention to overlapping state and federal laws. Whether you are a service member or married to one, military divorce requires careful planning, legal knowledge, and strategic decision-making. Those who divorce a member of the military will go through the same process as two civilians would based on the divorce laws in Tennessee, but there can be significant differences in the process as well.
Protecting Rights and Benefits
From the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act protections delaying proceedings for deployed active duty members, to the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act governing division of military pensions and retirement pay, to specialized court orders ensuring proper child support enforcement, Tennessee military divorce involves considerations not present in civilian cases.
Military families benefit from working with experienced divorce attorneys familiar with both Tennessee divorce law and military policies to navigate jurisdictional questions, benefit divisions, custody arrangements accounting for deployment and relocation, and enforcement of court orders across state lines and international assignments, ensuring fair outcomes that protect both service members' rights and military families' financial security throughout and after divorce proceedings.