2001 Legislative Session: 2nd Session, 37th Parliament
FIRST READING
The following electronic version is for informational
purposes only.
The printed version remains the official version.
HONOURABLE GEOFF PLANT
ATTORNEY GENERAL AND MINISTER
RESPONSIBLE FOR TREATY NEGOTIATIONS
HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, enacts as follows:
1 Section 1 of the Provincial Court Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 379, is amended by adding the following definitions:
"full time judge" means a judge, other than a judge appointed under section 6 (1) (b) or a part time judge;
"part time judge" means a judge who elects under section 9.1 (1) to hold office as a part time judge; .
2 Section 6 (3) is repealed and the following substituted:
(3) The following persons may not be reappointed under subsection (1) (b):
(a) a person who is under 55 years of age or over 70 years of age;
(b) a person who holds or held office as a part time judge.
3 The following section is added:
9.1 (1) Subject to subsection (2), on or after reaching 55 years of age, a judge with at least 10 years' service as a judge may elect to hold office as a part time judge with judicial duties assigned by the chief judge.
(2) An election under subsection (1) must be made no later than March 31, 2005.
(3) A chief judge, associate chief judge or administrative judge may make an election under subsection (1) but may not serve as a part time judge under this section while serving as chief judge, associate chief judge or administrative judge.
(4) Unless otherwise approved by the chief judge, a judge who wishes to make an election under subsection (1) must give notice to the chief judge and the Attorney General at least 6 months before the date on which the judge wishes to cease full time service.
(5) The chief judge may specify the form and manner in which notice is to be given under subsection (4).
(6) An election under subsection (1) is irrevocable once the judge begins service as a part time judge and the part time judge may not resume office as a full time judge before ceasing to hold office under subsection (11).
(7) Subject to subsection (8), a part time judge
(a) is not entitled to make or have contributions made on his or her behalf to the Public Service Pension Plan in respect of service as a part time judge under this section,
(b) is, on the date that the judge's full time service ceases, entitled to receive his or her pension under the Public Service Pension Plan in accordance with the pension plan rules, and the cessation of full time service is deemed to be a termination of the judge's employment but only for the purposes of those pension plan rules, and
(c) must be paid a part time salary out of the consolidated revenue fund.
(8) A part time judge's salary in any year
(a) must not exceed 40% of the salary of a full time judge, and
(b) must not exceed the difference between the salary to which a full time judge is entitled for that year and the part time judge's pension for that year.
(9) For the purpose of calculating a part time judge's salary under this section, the chief judge may require the judge to give written notice of
(a) the normal form of the judge's pension calculated before any election of pension options and before any pension division or deduction from the pension, and
(b) any adjustments or changes to the pension the judge receives.
(10) Service as a part time judge under this section does not, for any purpose, count as contributory service or pensionable service.
(11) A part time judge under this section ceases to hold office as a judge on the earlier of the following:
(a) the date that the judge reaches 70 years of age;
(b) 5 years from the date that the judge ceases to serve as a full time judge;
(c) the effective date of a resignation submitted under section 17 (2);
(d) March 31, 2010.
(12) In the event of a conflict between this section and the pension plan rules made under the Public Service Pension Plan, this section prevails.
(13) Subsections (1) and (14) do not apply to a judge who holds an appointment under section 6 (1) (b).
(14) A person who
(a) between July 1, 2001 and the date that this section comes into force, retires or resigns from full time service as a judge,
(b) immediately before the effective date of the person's retirement or resignation, would have met the criteria set out in subsection (1) had this section been in force on that date, and
(c) gives written notice to the chief judge, within 30 days of this section coming into force, of the person's intention to serve as a part time judge under this section,
is deemed to have made an election under subsection (1) and to have given notice to the chief judge in accordance with subsection (4), and the person's appointment as a judge is deemed to have continued without interruption despite the retirement or resignation and the person may continue to serve as a part time judge under and in accordance with this section.
4 Section 12 (1) is amended by striking out "A judge must be paid," and substituting "Subject to section 9.1 (7) and (8), a judge must be paid,".
5 Section 14 is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by striking out "a judge" and substituting "a full time judge", and
(b) by adding the following subsections:
(1.1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3) of this section and sections 9.1 and 15, a part time judge must not engage, directly or indirectly, in any other occupation, profession or business, and must devote himself or herself exclusively to judicial duties for that number of weeks in each year that is arrived at by applying the following formula:
| PT annual salary | x 1.25 x 52 weeks = number of weeks |
|
|
|
| FT annual salary |
where
(a) PT annual salary is the annual salary of the part time judge, and
(b) FT annual salary is the annual salary of a full time judge.
(3) A part time judge must devote himself or herself exclusively to judicial duties for the purposes of subsection (1.1) on the working days, or portions of working days, scheduled by the chief judge.
6 Section 15 is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by striking out "A judge is entitled to annual vacation leave" and substituting "A judge, other than a part time judge, is entitled to annual vacation leave",
(b) by adding the following subsection:
(1.1) The number of working days to which a part time judge is entitled as annual vacation leave is determined as the number arrived at by applying the following formula:
| FT base vacation x | PT annual salary | + | accumulated unused vacation entitlement |
= | number of working days (rounded up to the next whole number) |
|
|
|||||
| FT annual salary |
where
(a) FT base vacation is the number of working days of annual vacation leave to which a full time judge is entitled under subsection (1), less any accumulated unused vacation entitlement,
(b) PT annual salary is the annual salary of the part time judge,
(c) FT annual salary is the annual salary of a full time judge, and
(d) accumulated unused vacation entitlement is the number of days, if any, that the part time judge has accrued as unused vacation leave under section 2 of B.C. Reg. 327/95. , and
(c) in subsections (3) and (4) by adding "or (1.1)" after "subsection (1)".
7 Section 19 is amended
(a) in subsection (1) by striking out "Subject to this section and section 20," and substituting "Subject to this section and sections 9.1 and 20,", and
(b) by adding the following subsection:
(5) Subsections (3) and (4) do not apply to a part time judge under section 9.1.
Explanatory Notes
SECTION 1: [Provincial Court Act, amends section 1] adds definitions of "full time judge" and "part time judge".
SECTION 2: [Provincial Court Act, repeals and replaces section 6 (3)] provides that a person who is or was a part time judge may not be reappointed as a judge under section 6 (1) (b) of the Act.
SECTION 3: [Provincial Court Act, enacts section 9.1] enables judges who are 55 years of age with at least 10 years of judicial service to retire from regular full time office to collect pensions and receive partial salaries for serving in office as part time judges.
SECTION 4: [Provincial Court Act, amends section 12 (1)] makes the provision subject to the proposed section 9.1 (7) and (8).
SECTION 5: [Provincial Court Act, amends section 14] requires part time judges to devote themselves exclusively to their duties as part time judges for the period specified by the section as scheduled by the chief judge.
SECTION 6: [Provincial Court Act, amends section 15] provides a formula for determining the annual vacation leave to which a part time judge is entitled.
SECTION 7: [Provincial Court Act, amends section 19] makes the provision subject to the proposed section 9.1 and disapplies section 19 (3) and (4) in relation to a part time judge under the proposed section 9.1.
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