Vacation & Sick Time

The sworn financial statement form (JDF 1111) approved by the Colorado Supreme Court requires the spouses to disclose their "Accrued Paid Leave (sick, vacation, personal)", and then to put on a supporting schedule the value of that leave.  In some cases, this could be substantial - e.g. an employee who earns $240,000 per year, or $20,000 per month, and has accrued a month of paid leave, potentially has an additional $20,000 asset.

However, unlike the other assets and debts listed on the sworn financial statement, accrued leave may not be divisible if the value is speculative.  In re: Marriage of Cardona, 09CA1996 (Colo. App. 2010).

In Cardona, a case of first impression in Colorado, the trial court required the husband to pay the wife for half of the value of the accrued leave, despite the husband testifying that (1) he had no right to cash in the accrued leave except upon leaving the company, and (2) he was planning on using his accrued leave for parenting time.

The Court of Appeals reversed, holding that the accrued leave was more akin to an employee's unvested stock options.  The husband would have no right to get paid for the time if he used it, e.g. simply by taking vacation, or if he became sick and had to take time off work, so the leave was speculative to divide.

The court also rejected the request to simply delay dividing the leave until the husband did leave the firm, to see if he ended up cashing any out, on the grounds that it would simply create an incentive to use it.

Military Leave

If one spouse is in the military, he/she has the right to cash in accrued military leave in some circumstances, such as when leaving active duty, or when an enlisted person reenlists.  If one of those circumstances applies, then the Colorado domestic relations judge is more likely to treat the leave as a divisible asset.  See the article on Cashing in Military Leave in the Military Divorce Guide for more information on a servicemember's rights to cash in leave.