1. Employee and Employer Contributions
401(k) plans may include both employee deferrals and employer matching or profit-sharing contributions. It’s not uncommon for only a portion of employer contributions to be “vested,” meaning actually earned and owned by the employee.
When drafting the QDRO, it’s important to specify whether the alternate payee will share in just the vested amounts or any future vesting. Most QDROs divide only what’s already vested as of the date of divorce or the date of distribution.

