Court Opinion

ID: 7748304
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2022-07-30 20:14:22.376128+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T16:27:38.166116
License: Public Domain

I concur with Judge Crawley's special opinion. I write separately to note that trial courts have the discretion, under certain circumstances, to award a divorcing spouse up to one-half of the other divorcing spouse's retirement benefits as alimony in gross or as part of a property settlement. See generally § 30-2-51, Ala. Code 1975 (as amended in 1995). However, because the parties were not married for 10 years during which the husband's retirement benefits were accumulated, I cannot conclude that the wife was entitled to a portion of those benefits. See
§ 30-2-51(b)(1), Ala. Code 1975.