In re Marriage of Grandt, 2022 IL App (2d) 210648

- Case citation and parties
In re Marriage of Grandt, 2022 IL App (2d) 210648. Petitioner-Appellant: Judith Grandt; Respondent-Appellee: Laurence J. Grandt.

- Key legal issues
1) Whether a spouse’s postdissolution disability pension that later converts/evolves into an age‑based retirement pension is a “pension” divisible under the parties’ marital settlement agreement (MSA) and dissolution judgment; and 2) whether the trial court erred in denying enforcement and restitution when the payor claimed ongoing disability status to avoid division.

- Holding/outcome
The Second District reversed the trial court’s denial of Judith’s petition for enforcement of judgment and restitution and remanded for further proceedings.

- Significant legal reasoning (concise)
The appellate court treated the MSA as a contract (reviewed de novo) and applied statutory interpretation principles to the Illinois Pension Code. It concluded the trial court erred in holding the parties did not intend to divide an earned pension when the payor later becomes eligible for retirement. The court emphasized that an agreement to divide “pension” should be read in light of how the statutory pension system actually operates (including conversion/eligibility mechanics) and that a party cannot defeat a spouse’s agreed share simply by characterizing payments as “disability” if, under the plan/statute, those payments convert to retirement benefits when retirement eligibility is met. The opinion reversed reliance on In re Marriage of Belk to the extent it supported denying division here, and noted the existence of prior court orders (a 2001 QILDRO providing Judith’s marital portion “when benefits become payable”) that buttressed the remedy.

- Practice implications for family lawyers (practical takeaways)
- Draft MSAs to define “pension,” “disability benefits,” and treatment of conversions (disability → retirement), and to specify triggers for division.
- Obtain and enter QDRO/QILDRO language at dissolution or as soon as possible; include contingent language for later conversions and survivorship rights.
- When a former spouse is receiving disability payments, pursue plan administrator records to determine whether and when those payments can or will convert to retirement (and preserve evidence).
- File enforcement or declaratory relief promptly when conversion/retirement eligibility occurs; courts may not allow a party to avoid an agreed division by labeling benefits “disability.”
- Anticipate statutory nuances of municipal/firefighter pension plans and coordinate with counsel experienced in pension QDRO practice.