Dividing retirement assets during divorce is a critical part of reaching a fair financial settlement. When one spouse has a retirement plan like The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan, the proper tool to divide that plan is a Qualified Domestic Relations Order, or QDRO. Without a QDRO, the plan administrator can’t legally transfer any portion of the retirement plan to the non-employee spouse, also known as the “alternate payee.”
But not all QDROs are built the same—especially when dealing with plans like The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan. You need to understand how traditional and Roth accounts are treated, how vesting and loan balances affect distributions, and what documents the plan administrator will require.
To correctly process a QDRO for this plan, the plan number and sponsor EIN must be identified. These should be listed in either the Summary Plan Description (SPD) or obtained directly from the plan administrator. This information is essential and must be included in the QDRO document.
As a 401(k)-type plan, The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan brings a few specific challenges when dividing it in divorce. Here are the main areas spouses and attorneys must pay attention to:
401(k) plans often include two kinds of contributions:
You can divide the plan using a percentage or a specific dollar amount. However, employer contributions may be subject to a vesting schedule. This means the employee spouse may only own a portion of those contributions, depending on how long they’ve worked for the sponsor (Unknown sponsor in this case).
Vesting is how much of the employer contributions the employee actually owns. For The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan, if the employee hasn’t been with the company long enough, part of the employer contributions may not be vested. That portion will eventually be forfeited and cannot be awarded to the alternate payee.
The QDRO should address how to handle unvested amounts. A typical option is to assign the alternate payee a percentage of whatever is vested as of the date of division. This avoids overpromising assets the employee doesn’t yet own.
401(k) plans often allow employees to take loans against their balance. If the employee has an outstanding loan from The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan, the order needs to clarify whether the percentage awarded to the alternate payee is calculated before or after the loan is subtracted.
Some QDROs award the alternate payee their portion of the “net” value — meaning the loan is subtracted first. Other orders specify their share should be based on the “gross” balance. It’s a crucial detail that can lead to significant financial discrepancies if left out.
The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan may include both pre-tax (traditional) and after-tax (Roth) accounts. This distinction is vital in QDROs. Roth funds are distributed tax-free (as long as IRS rules are met), while traditional funds are taxed as income when withdrawn.
Your QDRO must clearly state whether the alternate payee’s share comes from Roth, traditional, or both sources. Failing to account for this can result in surprise tax bills—or worse, rejection by the plan administrator.
Many QDROs submitted to plans like The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan get rejected for being incomplete or inconsistent. Some common mistakes include:
Don’t rush this process. A rejected QDRO delays asset division and may add unnecessary conflict and legal fees. Learn more about common QDRO errors on our page here: Common QDRO Mistakes.
At PeacockQDROs, we’ve completed many QDROs from start to finish. That means we don’t just draft the order and leave you to figure out the rest. We handle the drafting, preapproval (if applicable), court filing, submission, and follow-up with the plan administrator. That’s what sets us apart from firms that only prepare the document and hand it off to you.
We maintain near-perfect reviews and pride ourselves on a track record of doing things the right way. You don’t have to figure this out alone. Our team knows how to get QDROs accepted and processed quickly—even with plans as complex as The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan.
Every QDRO is unique. Factors like how long the marriage lasted, how many accounts are in play, and even how long your plan administrator takes to review paperwork affect your timeline. Read more about timing here: 5 Factors That Determine How Long It Takes to Get a QDRO Done.
When preparing a QDRO for The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan, you’ll need:
Some plan administrators offer a model QDRO or pre-approval process—which can save time. Others don’t. Either way, having an experienced team handle communications with the administrator ensures everything is done according to that plan’s exact requirements.
If your plan administrator offers review before filing in court, we’ll do it. If they don’t, we’ll still base your QDRO on years of accepted language and experience with similar retirement plans.
If your divorce was in California, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, or North Dakota, and you have questions about qualified domestic relations orders or dividing retirement assets like the The New Museum of Contemporary Art 403(b) Plan, contact PeacockQDROs. We focus on QDROs and have successfully processed many orders from start to finish.
Get the answers you need—explore our QDRO resources or reach out for personalized help if you’re in one of our service states.
Willie has handled hundreds of QDROs, been named as a stipulated or court-appointed expert in hundreds of orders, testified as an expert witness on QDROs and state government pension survivor benefits, and taught CLEs on QDROs, legal ethics, and military pensions. He is a three-time ABA award-winning legal author and secured a victory before the North Dakota Supreme Court. Full bio →
