Courts of Justice and Court Officers (Superannuation) Act, 1961

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Surrender of part of pension by judges, justices and certain court officers for pension for wife or dependant.

7.——(1) (a) In this section—

“dependant” means, in relation to a person, a member of the family of such person who, at the time when such person notifies the Minister of his wish to make a surrender under this section, is wholly or in part dependent on the earnings of such person;

“member of the family” means father, mother, step-father, step-mother, son, daughter, grandson, granddaughter, step-son, step-daughter, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, son-in-law or daughter-in-law.

(b) For the purposes of the definition of “member of the family” contained in paragraph (a) of this subsection, a person adopted under the Adoption Act, 1952, shall be considered as the son or daughter of the adopter or adopters born to him, her or them in lawful wedlock and not to be the son or daughter of any other person.

(2) (a) Subject to the subsequent provisions of this section and of regulations made by the Minister, a person retiring from office as a judge of the Supreme Court, the High Court or the Circuit Court, a justice, Master of the High Court, a Taxing Master or a County Registrar otherwise than on the ground of ill-health on or after the day appointed to be the appointed day under paragraph (d) of this subsection may, with respect to any pension that may be granted to him under the Acts or the Court Officers Acts, 1926 to 1951, as the case may be, surrender part of that pension as from its commencement in return for the grant by the Minister under this Act of a pension to the wife or one dependant of the person specified by him.

(b) The regulations under this subsection may, in particular, make provision with respect to all or any of the following matters:

(i) notification by a person of the person's wish to make a surrender under this section may be lodged not later than a specified time before the date of retirement,

(ii) a person shall not be entitled to make a surrender under this section unless the Minister decides that the person is of sound health,

(iii) requirement by the Minister of production by a person wishing to make a surrender under this section of any proofs which the Minister may consider necessary (including, in particular, productionof a statutory declaration that the proposed grantee (not being the wife of the person) is, in relation to the person, a dependant),

(iv) a surrender shall remain valid, unless duly cancelled or amended, notwithstanding that as the result of a subsequent alteration of the amount or estimated amount, of the pension, the amount of pension to be surrendered is not within the limits provided for in this section,

(v) notice of a surrender shall become null and void if, before the retirement of the person wishing to make the surrender under this section, either that person or the proposed grantee of the pension under this section dies,

(vi) where a person is required to undergo medical examination under the regulations, the person shall be responsible for payment of the fee for the examination.

(c) Where—

(i) a person has made a surrender under this section,

(ii) a pension under this section has been granted in relation to the surrender to a grantee other than the wife of the person, and

(iii) the person has submitted to the Minister, pursuant to regulations under this section, a statutory declaration that the grantee is, in relation to the person, a dependant,

if the Minister ascertains at any time after the grant of the pension that the grantee was, in relation to the person not a dependant, the surrender and pension shall be deemed valid, but the grantee of the pension, in case payment of the pension has not commenced, shall forfeit the pension and, in case payment of the pension has commenced, shall forfeit so much thereof as remains unpaid.

(d) The Minister may by order appoint a day to be the appointed day for the purposes of this section.

(3) A pension under this section shall be granted so as to be of such value as, on the date of retirement, is actuarially equivalent (in accordance with such tables as, on the date of the retirement, stand approved of by the Minister for the purposes of this section) to what is surrendered.

(4) (a) A pension under this section granted to the wife of a person shall be payable either, as the person may elect when he makes the surrender under this section—

(i) during the period (if any) for which the wife survives the person, or

(ii) during both the period of the joint lives of the person and the wife subsequent to the retirement of the person and the period (if any) for which the wife survives the person.

(b) A pension under this section granted to a dependant of a person shall be payable during the period (if any) for which the dependant survives the person.

(5) In the case of a pension under this section which is payable during the periods specified in subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of this section, the rate of the pension for the second period shall be double the rate thereof for the first period.

(6) (a) Where a pension granted under this section to a dependant of a person is payable and the dependant has not attained the age of twenty-one years, the Minister may substitute for the pension (disregarding any payments already made) an annuity which—

(i) is payable for whichever of the following periods is the shorter:

(I) the period beginning on the date of the substitution and ending on the date of the death of the dependant,

(II) the period beginning on the date of the substitution and ending on such date, not earlier than five years after the date of the substitution, as may be determined by the Minister, and

(ii) is of such value as, on the date of the substitution, is actuarially equivalent (in accordance with such tables as, on the date of the substitution, stand approved of by the Minister for the purposes of this section) to the pension (disregarding any payments already made).

(b) The following provisions shall have effect for the purposes of substitutions under paragraph (a) of this subsection:

(i) a substitution shall not be made save on the request of the parent or guardian of the dependant,

(ii) a substitution shall not be made unless the Minister decides that the dependant is in good health,

(iii) for the purpose of deciding as to the health of the dependant, the Minister may require the dependant to undergo medical examination and the parent or guardian of the dependant shall be responsible for payment of the fee for the examination,

(iv) subject to the foregoing subparagraphs of this paragraph, the making of a substitution shall be at the discretion of the Minister.

(7) Where—

(a) a pension or annuity granted under this section is payable, and

(b) the grantee has not attained the age of twenty-one years,

payments of the pension or annuity shall, until the grantee attains the age of twenty-one years, be made to the parent or guardian of the grantee.

(8) Where a person surrenders under this section part of a pension—

(a) he shall not surrender less than such portion of the pension as would provide a pension under this section after his death equal to one-fourth of the amount of the pension remaining after the surrender,

(b) he shall not surrender more than—

(i) one-third of the pension, or

(ii) such portion of the pension as would provide a pension under this section after his death equal to the amount of the pension remaining after the surrender,

whichever is the less, and

(c) he shall not surrender an amount of the pension which is not an exact number of pounds.

(9) For the purposes of sections 8 and 17 and subsection (5) of section 48 of the Act of 1936 and subsection (2) of section 4 of the Act of 1945 the remuneration by reference to which a pension of which part is surrendered under this section was computed shall be treated as reduced by the amount surrendered.

(10) Where a person surrenders under this section part of a pension, then, for the purpose of calculating the amount of any gratuity which may be granted to his legal personal representative under subsection (4) of section 2 or subsection (4) of section 4 , as the case may be, of this Act, the amount paid to him on foot of the pension at the time of his death shall be deemed to be the amount which would have been so paid but for the surrender.