Employee Contributions vs. Employer Contributions
401(k) plans usually include both employee contributions (what the participant put in) and employer contributions (often matching funds). The QDRO needs to specify whether the alternate payee (typically the former spouse) is receiving a share of both types, and whether this share is calculated as of a specific date—usually the date of separation or divorce.
Pro tip: if the original participant continued contributing to the plan after separation, the QDRO should clearly exclude those post-separation contributions if agreed upon. Otherwise, it could result in a bigger share going to the alternate payee than intended.

