Deborah Lynn Foster v. Ray James Foster

Summary

The Michigan Supreme Court held that federal preemption did not eliminate state-court subject-matter jurisdiction over a divorce judgment dividing marital property that included military retirement and disability benefits. Because the divorce judgment was entered with jurisdiction over the parties and subject matter, the preempted offset provision was an erroneous exercise of jurisdiction rather than a void judgment, making the defendant's challenge an improper collateral attack barred by res judicata. The court reversed the Court of Appeals and remanded for further proceedings.