Govt, ex-judges, dependants given a month to settle pension suit
Published on: Wednesday, January 31, 2024
By: FMT
A lawsuit involving 28 retired judges and seven dependants and the government over a pension dispute will be called up next for case management on March 3, 2024.
Kuala Lumpur: The High Court has given the government and a group of retired judges and dependants one month to negotiate an out-of-court settlement to resolve a lawsuit among them over pension payments, a lawyer said.
Christopher Leong, a member of the legal team representing the plaintiffs, comprising 28 retired judges and seven widows of former judges, said Justice Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh fixed the suit for case management on March 3.
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“This is to give parties, without prejudice, time to discuss a settlement and update the court,” he told FMT.
A case management was held today, with federal counsel M Kogilambigai requesting more time for deliberations.
Lawyer Abdullah Abdul Rahman appeared for the plaintiffs in today’s proceedings, which were held online.
FMT understands the government had submitted a proposal earlier and received a counter-proposal from the plaintiffs last week.
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In their suit filed early last year, the plaintiffs said they were seeking legal redress as the government had refused to entertain a notice of demand sent on their behalf in September 2022.
The plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that their pensions should be adjusted annually based on the salaries of current judges.
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The problem arose when the government revised the salary of judges in 2015, providing a higher pension plus a 2% annual increment for those who retired after the amendment.
However, those who retired before 2015 continued to receive pensions based on their old salaries plus a 2% annual rise.
The plaintiffs want a declaration that the amendment is in breach of a constitutional provision that judges’ remuneration and other terms of office, including pension rights, should not be altered to their disadvantage after appointment.
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