In Re The Marriage Of Kelm

912 P.2d 545 (1996)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

H and W were married for 26 years prior to the dissolution of the marriage in 1992. At the time of dissolution, H worked in the civil service for the Army and had a vested interest in the CSRS retirement plan. W was employed part-time as a librarian and was under the PERA plan for Colorado public employees. Both parties held vested but unmatured interests in their respective pensions. It was undisputed that the parties' vested but unmatured interests in the two pensions were marital property. The trial court gave W 19/30th of one half of H's pension benefits or 31.7% of the total and kept jurisdiction for early retirement or in the event that H was laid off. The trial court then gave W all of the PERA benefits and ordered H to maintain W as a beneficiary of the retirement funds. H appealed. The appeals court held that the trial court ruling was ok except for the awarding W of the entire lump sum credit under H's retirement plan as if he were to die prior to retirement; W was only entitled to receive a lump sum distribution of only the predissolution contributions.