Marriage Breakdown of Active Member

Declaration of No Pension Division (if no agreement or order)

Copy of a separation or divorce agreement or court order

A member becomes separated or divorced from his or her spouse and the pension credits are split.

Tell member that upon the breakdown of a marriage or common-law relationship, the CAAT Pension Plan requires evidence that the ex-spouse is entitled to a share of the member's pension, or that the entitlement has been waived. The best source of this evidence is a copy of the separation or divorce agreement or court order that directly addresses the settlement of the pension entitlement.
Tell member that if there is no agreement or order, or if the agreement or order is silent on pension division, he or she will be asked to complete the Declaration of No Pension Division form. The form confirms that there is no relevant agreement or order providing for the division of the member's pension.
Give the member and the Plan the following information:

member's earnings and contributions for the calendar year of marriage breakdown up to the date of marriage breakdown.
if marriage took place after enrolment, the earnings and contributions from the date of the marriage to the end of that calendar year.

If requested, review the proposed wording in a separation or divorce agreement that relates to the division of the member's pension entitlement, to determine if the proposed settlement is acceptable for use by the Plan under provincial law.
Once the pension separation agreement or Declaration form is received, keep it on file to calculate the proper benefit entitlements (subject to the PBA) when the member ceases to be employed by the college.
The CAAT Pension Plan cannot value the pension accrued during marriage nor can it transfer lump sum amounts.
Provide the following to the member upon request, and, if authorized in writing by the member, to the spouse or the representatives of the spouse or the member, so that an actuary may calculate the value of the pension earned during the marriage or common-law relationship:

pension accrued in the Plan during marriage or common-law relationship
member contributions made to the Plan during marriage or common-law relationship
interest earned on those contributions.

When the agreement is finalized, send copies as described above to the CAAT Pension Plan.
If appropriate, complete the Declaration of No Pension Division form as described above.

Plan Text Reference: 9.02, 17.06

September 2009