§651-124  Pension money exempt.  The
right of a debtor to a pension, annuity, retirement or disability allowance,
death benefit, any optional benefit, or any other right accrued or accruing
under any retirement plan or arrangement described in section 401(a), 401(k),
403(a), 403(b), 408, 408A, 409 (as in effect prior to January 1, 1984), 414(d),
or 414(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or any fund created
by the plan or arrangement, shall be exempt from attachment, execution,
seizure, the operation of bankruptcy or insolvency laws under 11 United States
Code section 522(b), or under any legal process whatever.  However, this
section shall not apply to:



(1)  A "qualified domestic relations order"
as defined in section 206(d) of the Employee Retirement Security Act of 1974,
as amended, or in section 414(p) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended; and



(2)  Contributions made to a plan or arrangement
within the three years before the date a debtor files for bankruptcy, whether
voluntary or involuntary, or within three years before the date a civil action
is initiated against the debtor, except for contributions to a retirement plan
established by state statute if the effect would be to eliminate a state
employee's retirement service credit. [L 1986, c 289, §1; am L 2004, c 34, §1;
am L 2005, c 152, §2]



 



Case Notes



 



  Section 206(d)(1) of ERISA erects a general bar to the
garnishment of pension benefits from ERISA-covered plans; insofar as compliance
with both section 206(d)(1) of ERISA and the exception to this section is
"a physical impossibility", the exception to this section is
preempted to the extent that it actually conflicts with ERISA. 90 H. 345, 978
P.2d 783.