Marriage of Kelpe

Summary

Nicolas worked at Ernst & Young through a 2010 separation, then became an equity partner in 2012 with a $150,000 contribution from post-separation funds. Partnership gave him access to the Top-Hat Plan, which non-partners could not join. When he left in 2015 before vesting, he received $928,243, calculated on 20 years of service, 13 of them during marriage, and net of his accrued benefit under the existing plans. The court held the payout was entirely separate property, because he acquired the contractual right only upon joining the partnership after separation. Affirmed.

What it means for the financial analysis

Characterization turned on when the contract right was acquired, not on whether marital years of service fed the formula. Before building a time-rule schedule, the expert should date the plan entry. The time rule apportions a benefit earned both during and after marriage, and it does not decide whether the community has any interest at all. Here the payout was computed net of benefits under the older plans, so the community's share of those plans needs its own analysis.

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