The “Dire Plight” Contextualized: Comment on “The Fiction of Equitable Distribution: Military Divorce, Disability, and the ‘Dire Plight’ of the Former Military Spouse” by Zoe Speas

Abstract

For forty years, military spouses have sacrificed their economic security and personal well-being to support their servicemember spouse’s military career, only to be thrust into a “dire plight” if their marriage ends in a community property state. The legislative policy that put them in this untenable position has not served federal interests: the military currently faces a recruiting crisis and military spouses’ economic security has not improved since the USFSPA. It is time for Congress and the DoD to reexamine the incentives and benefits provided to servicemembers and their families. Congress and the Court must end the USFSPA’s groundless, inequitable, and inconsistently applied legacy by focusing on making it easier and more appealing to live as a military family. Doing so will serve the “clear and substantial” interests of the military to recruit, retain, and retire a strong military while also improving outcomes for military families. This is a rare opportunity for Congress to be pro-military, pro-women, and pro-family