1. Employer Contributions and Vesting Schedules
Profit sharing plans typically include discretionary employer contributions. But these are often subject to a vesting schedule. If your spouse isn’t 100% vested yet, part of the account balance may be forfeitable in the future. That’s critical when drafting the QDRO—we always include language accounting for these unvested amounts to ensure fair division, even if the participant doesn’t retain the job long-term.
Also, we prioritize alternate payee protection by specifying that distributions should not include forfeited amounts, and we often include survivor benefit protections as well.

