Film Musicians Secondary Markets Fund

Providing service and support to film and television musicians.

DIVORCE ACCOMMODATION POLICY

IMPORTANT NOTICE

Musicians who are contemplating a divorce should review this information prior to meeting with their attorney. The Fund does not, and does not purport to, offer legal or tax advice.

As a convenience for participating Musicians, the Fund may, in certain circumstances, provide a divorce accommodation upon the divorce between a Musician and his/her spouse.

The Fund can only provide a divorce accommodation for the convenience of the Musician if it conforms to the administrative requirements below. Any arrangement between a Musician and his/her ex-spouse that does not comport with these administrative requirements cannot be accommodated by the Fund, and the parties will be required to manage their financial arrangements directly.

  • If specified in a court order or final judgment of dissolution (a conformed copy of which must be provided to the Fund), the Fund will allocate the Musician's annual check (gross amount) by a given or variable percentage for a determinate number of years, not to exceed ten years from the date of the court order or final judgment of dissolution.
  • The percentage allocation may be specified in any manner (e.g., 50/50, 60/40, etc.). In addition, the percentage allocation may vary from year to year (e.g., 1st year 60/40, 2nd year 50/50, 3rd year 40/60, 4th year 30/70, etc.).
  • Payment to the Musician will be subject to tax withholdings, but not the payment forwarded to the ex-spouse. (A W-2 is generated for the Musician and a 1099 is generated for the ex-spouse).

Once set up, the divorce accommodation will continue for the period originally specified, not to exceed ten years, unless the Fund receives an amended court order specifying that the arrangement is to be terminated by an earlier date.

  • The court order or final judgment of dissolution MUST specifically name the Film Musicians Secondary Markets Fund as the entity distributing these payments. If another entity is named, the Fund will not be able to comply with the order, or modify or terminate the divorce accommodation as originally requested until a correction is made.

Please read the additional information regarding divorce accommodations before submitting a request for a divorce accommodation. A divorce accommodation request inconsistent with these requirements cannot be processed by the Fund.

Please read important additional details and requirements HERE.

Updated: 03/24/2017