B-227505: Sep 21, 1987

The marital status of the service member who obtained the divorce in Mexico and subsequently married the claimant here is too uncertain to determine the proper recipient of the member's SBP annuity. Even if the foreign divorce were validated so as to make the claimant the service member's lawful wife at the time of his death. If the divorce is valid. In the absence of a determination by a court of...

B-227505: Sep 21, 1987

A former service member's widow claimed that she was entitled to Survivor Benefit Plan benefits as his surviving spouse, contending that her marriage to the deceased was valid because he obtained a foreign divorce from his third wife. GAO noted that the deceased had elected his third wife as beneficiary. GAO held that it could not determine the proper beneficiary absent a determination by a compet...