Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Divorce

The cutoff date for classification of an asset as marital or non-marital is the date of filing a petition for dissolution of marriage or the date specified by a separation agreement. How does this rule apply to contributions to a marital retirement account made after the filing of a petition for divorce? This was an issue in the case Murphy v. Murphy, 2D18-4635 (Fla. 2d DCA March 12, 2021).

The parties were married for two years by the time the former husband opened a Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). The former husband contributed to the account throughout the marriage. He filed for divorce in August 2014, but the former wife was not served until July 2015. The former husband attributed the delay to his hope that the parties could reconcile. During the period between filing and service, the couple continued to reside together, attended counseling together and otherwise attempted to fix their marriage. Once the case proceeded to trial, the court determined the TSP to be marital and valued it as of the date of trial, causing the contributions the former husband made to the account after the filing of the petition to be included as a marital asset. The former husband appealed.

The appellate court reversed this decision, holding “In the amended final judgment, the trial court correctly identified the date the petition for dissolution was filed as the classification date of the parties' assets while also finding that the former husband engaged in "financial gamesmanship" warranting use of the final hearing date as the valuation date. The court failed, however, to address how the contributions made to the TSP after the date the petition was filed—to the extent that they constitute an ‘asset[] that did not exist on the date of filing’—are to be classified; such a failure is error in this case.” The case was remanded with instruction to the trial court to "determine how to classify the postfiling contributions to the TSP.”

Your Miami divorce case should start with a consultation with a Miami divorce lawyer. This may help you understand how the law may apply to your case.