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tainosys · Mar 16, 2012, 03:45 PM

My friends' wife retired recently and under her pension benefit she was entitled to receive 50% in monthly benefits for the rest of her life. And if she dies her surviving spouse was to receive the remaining 50%. But if she wanted to get 100% payments she and her spouse needed to both sign a rejection of wife and spouse 50% benefits letter. She took him to a notary public to sign this letter but under the pretense that he was going to receive 50% as her surviving beneficiary. He trusted her and signed it without reading it first. A few months later she broke up with him and now is in plans to divorce him. Does he has any recourse regarding the pension benefits?

ballengerb1 · Mar 16, 2012, 04:14 PM

In what country is this? In the USA where I am located there is no such letter as "rejection of wife " if there was I know a few folks who'd want a template for the form

Fr_Chuck · Mar 16, 2012, 04:56 PM

The injured party would file to have this signing over turned, They will have to prove they did not know, it will be hard.

tainosys · Mar 17, 2012, 05:38 AM

The person is in NY.
HUSBAND-AND-WIFE PAYMENT OPTION*
If you are legally married, your pension will automatically be paid in the Husband-and-Wife Payment form. In exchange for a reduction to your monthly benefit, 50% of the benefit you were receiving during your retired lifetime will be continued to your surviving spouse after your death, for his or her lifetime.
If you are single, or if both you and your spouse reject the Husband-and-Wife Payment option, no additional payments will be made after your death. Your Pension will be paid for your lifetime only under the Single Life Payment form with no Husband-and-Wife reduction.The Fund Office will furnish you with the actual figures that apply to your case, including both the monthly benefit that would be payable under a Single Life Payment form and that payable under the Husband-and-Wife Payment.I think that he signed a Rejection of Husband -and- Wife Payment Option.This is from the http://www.hotelfunds.org/.

JudyKayTee · Mar 17, 2012, 06:18 AM

I'm in NY. I am familiar with this form. It's not a "rejection of husband or wife." It's a rejection of benefits to husand or wife. There's a difference.

He can go to Court - which will be quite expensive - and try to overturn the document. I doubt he will win because it was his responsibility to read what he was signing. Every form which I have seen states that this is PERMANENT. There is not changing your mind later.

The fact that her income is now 100% of her pension instead of 50% and he gets nothing upon her death CAN be factored into the divorce settlement.

I trust he has a competent attorney.

ScottGem · Mar 17, 2012, 02:08 PM

This is a standard feature of defined benefit (traditional pension) plans. When an employee applies for benefits they may be offered several options for payment. One option is full payment. The employee receives 100% of the calculated benefit, but it ceases when the recipient dies. There may be one or more "joint survivor" benefit options. In a Joint survivor option, the recipient receives a reduced amount in return for their spouse continuing to receive a benefit after the recipients death. That amount could be the same or less than the recipient received.

To waive the joint survivor option requires the spouse to sign a waiver of the option. This is US Federal law (ERISA). The husband will need a good attorney to overturn his signing the waiver. The ONE thing he has going for him is that she is filing for divorce only a few months after. A court MIGHT believe him that he was tricked and that the wife had planned this. But that's a long shot.

Does he have his own pension benefits?

JudyKayTee · Mar 17, 2012, 02:43 PM

Was hoping you were "back" - didn't have time to look up the law.

Good post!