BarbriSFCourseDetails
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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

    Intermediate

  • work Practice Area

    Family Law

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Tuesday, May 14, 2024

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$197.00
CLE
ALL

This CLE course will prepare family law attorneys to identify and use documents that are critical for military divorce cases. The panel will explain how to obtain, understand, and introduce the materials into evidence.

Faculty

Kristopher J. Hilscher
Attorney
Sullivan & Hilscher Family Law

Mr. Hilscher regularly serves as an expert co-counsel on military divorce cases and military pension division, assisting attorneys nationwide in drafting military pension division orders and consulting on military divorce issues. He is the chair of the military committee of the ABA family law section, and an appointed member of the ABA Standing Committee on Legal Assistance for Military Personnel, and a fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (AAML). Mr. Hilscher is a board-certified specialist in family law, certified parenting coordinator, and family financial mediator practicing with Sullivan & Hilscher Family Law in Raleigh, NC. He regularly speaks at CLE presentations on military family law, and is the author of several publications on the military family law. 

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Dawn M. Laubach
Founder
Laubach Law Office

Ms. Laubach practice focuses on family law, probate, estate planning and military law matters. She previously served on active duty with the United States Army Judge Advocate General's Corps for five years, providing her with  a wealth of trial experience and issues related to military law. After leaving active duty, she became a Reserve Judge Advocate prior to going into private practice.

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Description

In military divorces, family law counsel must understand all of the relevant documents needed to gain a full picture of the parties' financial status and marital estate. Recognizing which materials to obtain, how to get them, how to read the information, and how to introduce the documents into evidence are essential.

Documentation of military and retired pay, reserve component retirement points, accrued leave, elections for the survivor benefit plan, and notification of eligibility for retirement for a guard/reserve member are critical. Counsel must be familiar with how to obtain documents and how to use the documents obtained.

Listen as our panel of expert family law attorneys discusses the complexities and unique issues associated with obtaining, understanding, and using critical documents necessary in a military divorce. The panel will outline best practices for introducing the evidence in court.

Outline

  1. Documents necessary to understand military pay and retired pay
    • Leave and Earnings Statement for active-duty personnel (DFAS Form 702), Retirement Points Accounting System Statement for Guard/Reserve Personnel
    • Retiree Account Statement for retired personnel (DFAS-CL Form 7220)
    • Notice of Eligibility (20-year letter) for Guard/Reserve personnel
    • SBP (Survivor Benefit Plan) election form for Guard/Reserve personnel (DD Form 2656-5)
    • DD Forms 2656-1 and 2656-10 for SBP elections, former spouse "deemed election"
    • DD Form 2293 for submission of military pension division order
    • Letter servicemembers receive upon retirement (pay status) with the expected amount of retired pay and calculations
  2. Obtaining documents through court order or subpoena from the retired pay center (DFAS or Coast Guard), the Guard/Reserve headquarters or state adjutant general's office, or other military agency
  3. How to authenticate and get government records into evidence
  4. Other documents in the military family law case
    • Divorce cases: evidence of domicile (DD Form 2058)
    • Custody cases: family care plan documents
    • Tax issues regarding military compensation

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • What documents are necessary to understand military pay and retired pay?
  • What are the most effective ways to obtain documents from the retired pay center (Defense Finance and Accounting Service or Coast Guard Pay and Personnel Center), the Department of Veterans Affairs, and other offices or agencies?
  • How should counsel authenticate and introduce government documents into evidence?