How Is an FDNY Firefighter’s Pension Divided in a New York Divorce?

A guide for Staten Island firefighters, and how mediation lets you decide what happens to your pension instead of leaving it to a judge.

In Brief

In a New York divorce, the part of an FDNY firefighter’s pension earned during the marriage is marital property. If a court decides, it is usually split under the Majauskas formula and carried out through a Domestic Relations Order (DRO) that the New York City Fire Department Pension Fund must approve. Mediation lets both spouses shape that outcome together, privately, and on a schedule that works around firehouse tours.

Written for Angiuli & Gentile by Erin K. Colgan, Esq., Senior Partner, Divorce, Family Law & Mediation Last Updated: July 2026

For most FDNY families, the pension is the largest thing the marriage ever built. It is worth more than the house on many blocks of Staten Island, and it is the one asset a firefighter cannot simply hand over or refinance. So when a marriage ends, the first real question is rarely about the paperwork. It is, “What happens to my pension?”

That question has a clear answer under New York law, and it is one Erin K. Colgan of Angiuli & Gentile has walked hundreds of Staten Island families through. Below is how the division actually works, and why so many firefighters choose to settle it in mediation rather than in a courtroom.

Is My FDNY Pension Marital Property?

Yes, at least in part. New York is an equitable-distribution state under Domestic Relations Law (DRL) § 236(B), which means marital property is divided fairly, though not automatically 50/50. The portion of your Fire Department pension you earned during the marriage counts as marital property. Years of service before the wedding, and years after the divorce, generally do not.

The controlling authority is Majauskas v. Majauskas, 61 N.Y.2d 481 (1984), the Court of Appeals decision that made public pensions divisible in a New York divorce. Every firefighter, teacher, and police officer’s pension case in this state still runs on it.

What is the Majauskas Formula, and What Does It Mean For My Pension?

The Majauskas formula measures how much of your pension was earned during the marriage, then splits that marital slice. It uses a coverture fraction: months of service during the marriage divided by total months of service at retirement, multiplied by the benefit, then by 50%.

A simple illustration: if a firefighter retires with 30 years of service, 15 of them during the marriage, and a $2,000 monthly benefit, the spouse’s share works out to (180 ÷ 360) × $2,000 × 50%, or $500 per month. That is a rounded example, not a promise about your numbers, but it shows the shape of the math.

Here is the point most firefighters miss: Majauskas is the default a judge applies when the two of you cannot agree. It is not the only option. In mediation, you can agree to something else entirely, and that flexibility is where real money and real peace of mind live.

Why Do Firefighters Need a DRO, Not a “QDRO”?

Because the Fire Department Pension Fund is a government plan, not a private one. You will hear the term “QDRO” everywhere, but a Qualified Domestic Relations Order is a creature of ERISA, the federal law that governs private employer plans. New York City’s pension systems are not ERISA plans. A firefighter’s pension is divided through a Domestic Relations Order (DRO) that the New York City Fire Department Pension Fund reviews and approves on its own terms.

That distinction matters in practice. A judgment of divorce and a settlement agreement, by themselves, do not move a single dollar of pension. The draft DRO should go to the pension fund for approval before a judge signs it, so you are not sent back to court to fix language the fund rejects. And the division does not pay out until your pension becomes payable, which for most firefighters means when you actually retire. It is worth reviewing your beneficiary designations at the same time, since a divorce can revoke some of them automatically.

How Does Mediation Give a Firefighter More Control Over the Pension?

In mediation, you and your spouse decide together how to treat the pension, with a neutral mediator guiding the conversation, instead of a judge imposing the Majauskas default. A mediator does not represent either spouse and does not take sides. Each of you can have a review attorney look over the agreement before you sign.

Control is not abstract here. Once you are both at the table, options open up that a court order rarely offers. You might trade your spouse’s share of the pension for a larger share of the house or savings, so your retirement stays whole. You might agree to a fixed dollar amount rather than a lifetime percentage. You might time things around a 20-year service milestone. None of that is available when two lawyers are arguing motions and a judge simply applies the formula. Mediation turns a fixed outcome into a set of choices.

Can Mediation Work Around a Firehouse Schedule?

This is often the quiet reason firefighters prefer it. FDNY tours are not a nine-to-five. Members work day tours and longer night tours, swap shifts as “mutuals” to string together time off, and pick up overtime. A court calendar does not care about any of that. It hands you a date and expects you there.

Mediation sessions get scheduled around your tours, including evenings, rather than forcing you to burn leave for a courthouse appearance. The same flexibility carries into your parenting plan. A standard “every other weekend” order is built for a weekday job and quietly falls apart against a rotating tour chart. In mediation you can design a custody schedule that actually fits how firefighters live, and revisit it as the chart changes. The process is also private: it happens in a conference room, governed by a confidentiality agreement, rather than in an open courtroom where a firehouse-community family’s business becomes part of the public record.

How Long Does It Take, and Is It Cheaper than Court?

Usually, yes, on both counts. Uncontested New York divorces often resolve in roughly three to six months once the agreement is done, while contested cases commonly run twelve to eighteen months or longer. Because a no-fault divorce under DRL § 170(7) cannot be finalized until every economic and custody issue is settled, mediation is simply the fastest honest route to that finish line: you resolve the issues directly instead of litigating each one.

On cost, the math is straightforward. In mediation you share one neutral professional rather than funding two litigators through months of motion practice, depositions, and pension-valuation fights. That does not make mediation right for everyone. Where there is domestic violence, hidden assets, or a spouse who will not negotiate in good faith, court exists for a reason, and Erin K. Colgan of Angiuli & Gentile will tell you plainly if your situation is one of them.

What Happens When You Contact Erin K. Colgan of Angiuli & Gentile

The first step is a phone call to our Staten Island office at (718) 550-0466. We talk through your situation and whether mediation fits. If it does, we set a first joint session at a time that works around your tours. You bring the basics: pension statements, income, a rough picture of your assets and debts, and anything about the children’s schedule. From there we work through parenting, support, property, and the pension, one issue at a time, until there is a full agreement. We put it in writing, each spouse can have it reviewed, and it becomes the backbone of an uncontested divorce.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is my FDNY pension split in a divorce? 

The part earned during the marriage is marital property under New York law and can be divided. Service before the marriage and after the divorce generally stays yours. How the marital portion is handled is something you can decide in mediation rather than leave to a judge.

How is a firefighter’s pension divided in New York? 

By default, under the Majauskas formula, which splits the share earned during the marriage using a coverture fraction. The division is then carried out through a Domestic Relations Order the Fire Department Pension Fund approves.

Is it a QDRO or a DRO for an FDNY pension? 

A DRO. “QDRO” applies to private ERISA plans. The New York City Fire Department Pension Fund is a government plan, so a firefighter’s pension is divided through a Domestic Relations Order the fund reviews and approves.

Can we mediate a divorce around a 24-hour or rotating tour schedule? 

Yes. Sessions are scheduled around your tours, including evenings, and your parenting plan can be built to fit a rotating chart instead of a standard weekday schedule.

Is mediation private compared with going to court? 

Yes. Mediation takes place privately and is governed by a confidentiality agreement, so your finances and family details are not aired in an open courtroom or the public case file.

Do we each still need our own lawyer if we mediate? 

A mediator is a neutral who does not represent either spouse. You are not required to have separate counsel, but each of you may have a review attorney look over the agreement before signing, and many people do.

What if we don’t agree on the pension yet? 

That is what mediation is for. You do not need to have it solved before you start. The process exists to work through exactly these disagreements and reach terms you both accept.

How long does divorce mediation take? 

It varies with how many issues are open and how prepared you both are, but mediated, uncontested divorces commonly move much faster than contested litigation, often in a matter of months once the agreement is finalized.

Talk it through before you decide anything. If you are an FDNY firefighter facing a divorce on Staten Island, a short conversation can save you months of worry about your pension. Call Erin K. Colgan of Angiuli & Gentile at (718) 550-0466 to schedule a consultation.

This article is general information about New York law, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every divorce is different; speak with Erin K. Colgan of Angiuli & Gentile about your specific situation.