Under ERISA, if you named your spouse as the beneficiary of a plan, they remain the beneficiary even after a divorce. In this article I will go through some of the terminology and discuss various issues related to retirement plans and the divorce process.A Qualified Domestic Relation Order or QDRO is used to divide nongovernmental ERISA pensions. A 401(k) falls under ERISA, a federal law that trumps state laws. Unlike Arizona's law that removes an ex-spouse as a beneficiary, ERISA has no such law. To divide ERISA-qualified retirement assets without triggering tax issues, a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO) is required. Or, if you want to be cool around the family law community, the acronym, you would pronounce it QDRO, QDRO or QDRO. A QDRO will be filed to deal with Arizona retirement benefits and divorce. Dividing marital assets is part of every Arizona divorce.