The Provincial Court Judges’ Association of British Columbia is taking the provincial government to court for rejecting recommendations for salary increases made by the Judicial Compensation Commission (JCC).
The
Provincial Court Judges’ Association of British Columbia is taking the provincial government to court for rejecting recommendations for salary increases made by the Judicial Compensation Commission (JCC).
The association filed a petition in BC Supreme Court on December 20 naming the Attorney General of British Columbia as a respondent. The judges’ association claims the province failed to follow the Judicial Compensation Act and the “constitutional principle of judicial independence” when it rejected recommendations contained in the commission’s 2016 report.
“Meaningful and effective JCC proceedings are constitutionally required; their purpose is to protect the public interest in an independent judiciary by depoliticizing the setting of judicial remuneration,” the petition states. “The government may reject or vary the recommendations of a JCC, provided that legitimate reasons are given; however, the government must act in good faith, demonstrate respect for the process and deal with the recommendations of the JCC in a meaningful way.”
Meanwhile, the commission’s 2016 compensation report was delivered to the government and chief judge in October 2016, according to the petition. In the report, the commission found that the number of applications for judgeships in 2015 “dropped to nearly half the average of the preceding 10 years,” although the link between the number of applicants and salary levels is “unclear.”
“It is necessary to maintain a reasonable salary that is sufficient to attract exceptional candidates who can meet the needs of the court,” the commission found.
The report made 16 recommendations, including setting judicial compensation as of April 2017 at $273,000, increasing to $277,095 in 2018 and $281,251 in 2019. But the B.C. government rejected those numbers, setting salaries at $262,000 for April 1, 2017, to March 31, 2018, increasing to $266,000 in 2018-19, and $270,000 for 2019-20.
In rejecting the commission’s recommendations, the association claims, the government failed to comply with “constitutionally mandated criteria” for rejecting or varying the recommendations of the Judicial Compensation Commission.
The petition’s factual basis has not been tested in court, and the B.C. government had not responded to the petition by press time.
