A. Except as otherwise provided under federal law or law of this Commonwealth, upon the entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony on and after July 1, 1993, any revocable beneficiary designation contained in a then existing written contract owned by one party that provides for the payment of any death benefit to the other party is revoked. A death benefit prevented from passing to a former spouse by this section shall be paid as if the former spouse had predeceased the decedent. The payor of any death benefit shall be discharged from all liability upon payment in accordance with the terms of the contract providing for the death benefit, unless the payor receives written notice of a revocation under this section prior to payment.
B. The term "death benefit" includes any payments under a life insurance contract, annuity, retirement arrangement, compensation agreement or other contract designating a beneficiary of any right, property or money in the form of a death benefit.
C. This section shall not apply (i) to the extent a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony, or a written agreement of the parties provides for a contrary result as to specific death benefits, or (ii) to any trust or any death benefit payable to or under any trust.
D. If this section is preempted by federal law with respect to the payment of any death benefit, a former spouse who, not for value, receives the payment of any death benefit that the former spouse is not entitled to under this section is personally liable for the amount of the payment to the person who would have been entitled to it were this section not preempted.
E. Every decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony entered on or after July 1, 2012, shall contain the following notice in conspicuous, bold print:
Beneficiary designations for any death benefit, as defined in subsection B of § 20-111.1 of the Code of Virginia, made payable to a former spouse may or may not be automatically revoked by operation of law upon the entry of a final decree of annulment or divorce. If a party intends to revoke any beneficiary designation made payable to a former spouse following the annulment or divorce, the party is responsible for following any and all instructions to change such beneficiary designation given by the provider of the death benefit. Otherwise, existing beneficiary designations may remain in full force and effect after the entry of a final decree of annulment or divorce.
1993, c. 417; 2007, c. 306; 2012, c. 493.
Notes of Decisions
Lincoln Nat'l Life Ins. v. Johnson, 38 F. Supp. 2d 440 (E.D. Va. 1999).
· cites it 27× “The Provisions of the Stipulation and Agreement and Va.Code § 20-111.1 The validity of the Stipulation and Agreement and the Divorce Decree are not disputed, nor is it contended that the life insurance provision was amended.”
Southerland v. Est. of Southerland, 457 S.E.2d 375 (Va. 1995).
· cites it 2× “Code § 20-111.1 (Supp. 1994) provides, in material part: Upon the entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony on and after July 1, 1993, any revocable beneficiary designation contained in a then existing written contract owned by one party that provides…”
Van Den Broek v. Tang, 88 Va. Cir. 65 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2014).
· cites it 11× “Of concern were two sections of Va. Code § 20-111.1. Section A: revokes a beneficiary designation upon entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony and thus alters the order of precedence in 5 U.”
Maretta v. Hillman (Va. 2012).
· cites it 70× “Subsection A of Code § 20-111.1 provides, in relevant part: "Upon the entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony .”
Hillman v. Maretta, 80 Va. Cir. 439 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2010).
· cites it 44× “The Applicable Language of FEGLIA and Virginia Code § 20-111.1 FEGLIA § 8705, known as the statutory order of precedence, provides: Except as provided in subsection (e), the amount of group life insurance and group accidental death insurance in force on an employee at the date…”
Ragan v. Ragan, 2021 COA 75 (Colo. Ct. App. 2021).
“Va. Code Ann. § 20-111.1 (D) (Section D).”
Griffin v. Cowser-Griffin, 85 Va. Cir. 435 (Surry Cir. Ct. 2012).
· cites it 3× “In Maretta , the decedent listed his ex-spouse as the beneficiary of a Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) policy, and the decedent’s widow filed a claim against the ex-wife based on a Virginia Code provision that revokes beneficiary designations upon a divorce…”
Pittman v. Monumental Life Ins., 54 Va. Cir. 400 (Richmond County Cir. Ct. 2001).
· cites it 7× “*401 In 1993, the General Assembly of Virginia enacted Va. Code § 20-111.1 which in pertinent part provides: Upon the entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony on and after July 1, 1993, any revocable beneficiary designation contained in a then…”
Virginia Ret. Sys. v. Bonaparte, 61 Va. Cir. 304 (2003).
· cites it 6× “The parties agree that, as of July 1, 1993, Va. Code § 20-111.1 would control the outcome of the respective claims.”
The Nw. Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Moore (E.D. Va. 2021).
· cites it 3× “12 Appropriately, Moore does not argue that the PSA’s beneficiary designation is defeated by Va. Code § 20-111.1, Virginia’s revocation of benefits by divorce statute.”
— Va. Code Ann. § 20-111.1(A) — 3 cases
Van Den Broek v. Tang, 88 Va. Cir. 65 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2014).
“Of concern were two sections of Va. Code § 20-111.1. Section A: revokes a beneficiary designation upon entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony and thus alters the order of precedence in 5 U.”
Maretta v. Hillman (Va. 2012).
“Subsection A of Code § 20-111.1 provides, in relevant part: "Upon the entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony .”
Hillman v. Maretta, 80 Va. Cir. 439 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2010).
“The Applicable Language of FEGLIA and Virginia Code § 20-111.1 FEGLIA § 8705, known as the statutory order of precedence, provides: Except as provided in subsection (e), the amount of group life insurance and group accidental death insurance in force on an employee at the date…”
— Va. Code Ann. § 20-111.1(D) — 4 cases
Van Den Broek v. Tang, 88 Va. Cir. 65 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2014).
“Of concern were two sections of Va. Code § 20-111.1. Section A: revokes a beneficiary designation upon entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony and thus alters the order of precedence in 5 U.”
Maretta v. Hillman (Va. 2012).
“Subsection A of Code § 20-111.1 provides, in relevant part: "Upon the entry of a decree of annulment or divorce from the bond of matrimony .”
Hillman v. Maretta, 80 Va. Cir. 439 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2010).
“The Applicable Language of FEGLIA and Virginia Code § 20-111.1 FEGLIA § 8705, known as the statutory order of precedence, provides: Except as provided in subsection (e), the amount of group life insurance and group accidental death insurance in force on an employee at the date…”
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