Jackson v. Jackson

• Decision Date: 09 April 2002
• Docket Number: No. 93,395.,93,395.
• Citation: 45 P.3d 418,2002 OK 25
• Parties: Eddie D. JACKSON, Plaintiff/Appellant, v. Deborah JACKSON (now Deborah Ambrose), Defendant/Appellee.
• Court: Oklahoma Supreme Court

45 P.3d 418

2002 OK 25

Eddie D. JACKSON, Plaintiff/Appellant, v. Deborah JACKSON (now Deborah Ambrose), Defendant/Appellee.

No. 93,395.

Supreme Court of Oklahoma.

April 9, 2002.

Barry K. Roberts, Norman, OK, for Plaintiff/Appellants.

Mark Monfort, Norman, OK, for Defendant/Appellee.

LAVENDER, J.

¶ 1 This cause requires us to decide if the trial court had authority to issue a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (1999 QDRO) after two prior QDROs (1993 QDRO and 1996 QDRO) were entered. We hold: in that Deborah Jackson (former wife or appellee) was awarded a formula-driven percentage of Eddie D. Jackson's (former husband or appellant) future benefit from the Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and Retirement System (System)¹ as part of the divorce decree's property division, the trial court had authority to issue the 1999 QDRO so long as it conformed to the formula spelled out in the decree for dividing the benefit. This is so notwithstanding that two prior QDROs had been issued, which either failed to conform to the divorce decree's property division formula and/or were rejected by the System as insufficient or inadequate to allow payment to former wife what she was owed under the decree's formula. Although a trial court is without jurisdiction or authority to issue a QDRO that substantively alters a final property division previously made in a divorce action, a trial court has jurisdiction or authority to issue a subsequent post-property division QDRO to act as the statutorily-sanctioned mechanism by which the System gains lawful empowerment to pay a former spouse their portion of a System benefit previously awarded as part of the final property division in the divorce action. We also hold the Court of Civil Appeals (COCA) erred by ruling, in a 2-1 decision, that the trial court acted outside its jurisdiction or authority. Finally, we deny both appellee's June 27, 2000 counter-motion to award counsel fees on appeal and appellant's June 27, 2000 motion for award of costs on appeal.

PART I. STANDARD OF REVIEW.

¶ 2 This case necessitates decision as to whether the trial court had jurisdiction or authority to issue the 1999 QDRO or, instead, whether its issuance was an extra-jurisdictional modification of a final property division in a divorce action. In that a question concerning the jurisdictional power of the trial court to act as it did is implicated our standard of review is de novo. Samman v. Multiple Injury Trust Fund, 2001 OK 71, ¶ 8, 33 P.3d 302, 305; Stidham v. Special Indemnity Fund, 2000 OK 33, ¶ 10, 10 P.3d 880, 885. Questions of law are also reviewed de novo, which involves a plenary, independent and non-deferential examination of a trial court's legal rulings. Samman, at ¶ 8, 33 P.3d at 305. We also note: a trial court has wide discretion in the division of marital property and the decision dividing such property will not be disturbed on appeal unless contrary to law, against the clear weight of the evidence, or an abuse of discretion is shown. Randol v. Randol, 1993 OK CIV APP 41, 849 P.2d 1118, 1121; see also Carpenter v. Carpenter, 1983 OK 2, 657 P.2d 646, 651; Peters v. Peters, 1975 OK 114, 539 P.2d 26, 27.

PART II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND, PROCEDURAL HISTORY AND LEGAL ANALYSIS.

PART II(A).

¶ 3 Appellant and appellee were married on or about June 5,1983. At such time, and for about ten (10) years prior thereto, appellant was a firefighter with the City of Oklahoma City. In April 1992 appellant initiated a divorce action. He was then still employed as a firefighter, as he was when the parties were divorced by decree filed on October 22, 1992. As part of the decree's property division, appellee was awarded a portion of appellant's vested interest in the System. The decree expressly found former husband had a vested interest in the System; part of the interest was his separate property (obviously any interest in the System earned while not married to appellee) and part was marital property (just as obviously any interest earned in the System while the parties were married). On page one of his February 18, 2000 brief in chief filed in this appeal former husband admits (1) the divorce decree awarded former wife a share of his retirement income under the System; (2) no appeal was lodged from the decree; and (3) the decree became final. Also, he does not question the trial court's initial authority to award a portion of his future retirement income to appellee as part of the divorce decree's property division.²

¶ 4 The decree contained the following concerning the division of the retirement income:³

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED by the Court that [former husband] is awarded a portion of his retirement compensation plan with the City of Oklahoma City and [former wife] is awarded a portion of same, as follows:

½ × 115 × Dollars paid to [appellant] [appellant's] total less [appellee's] pro-rata share of any months of employment State and Federal taxes[,]

pursuant to the Qualified Domestic[ ] Relations Order which is attached hereto and marked as Exhibit "A["].

In that 115 months was approximately the number of months of the marriage, the above formula appears intended to grant appellee about one-half (½), i.e. fifty percent (50%), of the future anticipated benefit or, in the language of the decree, of the "retirement compensation plan", earned during the marriage.⁴ In other words, the first part of the formula embodies the multiplication of two fractions. One is one-half (½) or fifty percent (50%). The other fraction has a numerator of one hundred (115) months (the approximate number of months of the parties' marriage) and a denominator representing appellant's total months of employment as a firefighter. The result of the multiplication of these two fractions (which can be expressed in percentage terms) is then multiplied by the total actual dollar benefit eventually to be paid to appellant by the System upon his retirement, which yields the actual share or amount of the System benefit to be paid to appellee.

¶ 5 In that appellant was still employed as a firefighter when the decree was issued and filed, the denominator of the second fraction was not then known. The longer he worked as a firefighter results in the denominator of the second fraction to be continually increasing, which concomitantly results in a decrease in the percentage appellee is entitled to under the divorce decree's formula. However, her share of the eventual retirement income from the System always remains approximately one-half (½) — or fifty percent (50%) — of the benefit earned during the marriage.

¶ 6 Even though the decree states a QDRO is attached to it as Exhibit A, in actuality no QDRO was attached. Not until July 1993 was a QDRO entered in the case.⁵ In setting out appellee's share of any System benefit, the 1993 QDRO states in pertinent part: "[t]he then current values as of the date of withdrawal of September 28, 1992:[t]wenty-four percent (24%) of the accumulation under Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and Retirement System." Appellant concedes or admits at page three of his February 18, 2000 brief that the meaning of the quoted language is confusing, but asserts the apparent intent was to award appellee some share of what had accumulated in the pension plan during the marriage. We also note, the September 28th date appears to reference the perceived date of the divorce (the 1993 QDRO stating the decree was dated September 28th).⁶ Prior to the COCA's decision in this case former husband, in his appellate submissions, relied on the 1993 QDRO as the order dividing the marital interest in the pension plan, although he never takes a firm stance as to its meaning, even though, as noted, he acknowledges its apparent intent is to award appellee a share of what had accumulated in the pension plan during the marriage. The 1993 QDRO was not appealed by either party.

¶ 7 Also in 1993, although appellant became eligible to retire and receive a pension benefit with, at least, twenty (20) years of service as a firefighter, he did not retire, but continued to work as a firefighter. Instead of retiring he elected to participate in a program known as the Oklahoma Firefighters Deferred Option Plan 11 O.S.Supp.1993, § 49-106.1, which allowed him to continue working for an additional five (5) years, while at the same time having what would have been his monthly retirement benefit, had he elected to cease employment and retire, paid into a deferred option account — the account drawing interest and eventually being paid to him in a lump sum or as an annuity upon his actual retirement. § 49-106.1.⁷ At page three of his February 18, 2000 brief appellant admits the pension benefits he would have received had he retired in 1993 were the funds paid into the deferred option plan account.⁸

¶ 8 In December 1996 a second QDRO issued at a time former husband still worked as a firefighter — i.e. he was not actually receiving any benefits from the System, although (as noted) the retirement benefit he would have received had he retired in 1993 was being paid into the deferred option account. The 1996 QDRO contained language at odds with both the formula specified in the divorce decree and the 1993 QDRO. It provides former wife is "entitled to a monthly benefit from the Plan equal to twenty-four percent (24%) of [former husband's] vested benefit in the Plan, accrued during the period beginning the 5th day of June, 1983, and ending the 28th day of September, 1992, determined as if [former husband] separated from employment on that date with a vested benefit under the Plan. . . ." Rather than giving appellee one-half (½) or fifty percent (50%) of the benefit corresponding to the approximate length of the marriage, the 1996 QDRO seems to award her only twenty-four percent (24%) of the benefit earned during the marriage. The 1996 QDRO was not appealed by either party. Neither the 1993 or 1996 QDRO required the System to pay appellee...