- 10 - Accordingly, the severance payment cannot be considered compensation for earlier services. Rather, it must be considered compensation for petitioner's agreeing to early separation from the Navy. Ultimately, the statute requires that the member's service be performed in a combat zone. Respondent argues that the severance payment was received in exchange for the pension petitioner would have received if he had completed 20 years of service. The parties in this case stipulated that petitioner accepted the separation offer as part of the Navy's downsizing program, and, as a result, he would not be eligible for a pension after 20 years of service. Accordingly, respondent's argument that the severance payment was received in exchange for pension benefits is a matter of conjecture. On the basis of the parties' stipulation, petitioner was not entitled to a pension at the time he accepted the early separation. Petitioner had served just over 14 years and was almost 6 years short of having "vested" pension benefits. It is true that as a result of petitioner's agreeing to sever his relationship with the military, he would not be able to serve long enough to be entitled to a pension. That is a far cry from exchanging his pension for a severance payment. The only similarity between a pension (which by statute is not exempt under section 112) and a severance payment is that both are calculated by means of length of service. There is no evidencePage: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Next
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