# The Judicial Pensions (Fee-Paid Judges) Regulations 2017, Regulation 128F: Limits on maximum purchases


(1) The maximum number of added units of benefit that an FPJABS member may purchase under the FPJABS is the amount that will provide benefits such that the limits set out in paragraphs (2), (3) and (5) are not exceeded.
(2) The aggregated retirement benefit must not exceed the figure equal to the lesser of—
(a) the amount referred to in paragraph (3)(a), (b) or (c) as appropriate; or
(b) the greater of—
(i) 2/3rds of the amount determined in accordance with the following formula—
WS−RBwhere—
RB is the member’s retained benefits, and
(ii) 1/60th of the value of WS for each year of qualifying judicial service, subject to a maximum of 40 years of qualifying judicial service.
(3) The amount referred to in paragraph (2)(a) is—
(a) where the member retires at or after the member’s earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions, the amount calculated by applying the appropriate fraction (determined in accordance with the table below, into which a fraction of a year is to be interpolated in accordance with paragraph (4)) to the value of WS—
Complete years of qualifying judicial service
Appropriate fraction
1
1/60
2
2/60
3
3/60
4
4/60
5
5/60
6
8/60
7
16/60
8
24/60
9
32/60
10 or more
40/60
(b) where the member retires before the member’s earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions on the grounds of ill-health, the amount determined in accordance with sub-paragraph (a) which the member could have received had the member remained in service until the member’s earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions;
(c) where the member retires before the member’s earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions on any other ground, an amount determined by adding together the amount for each of the member’s offices for which benefits are to be calculated under the pre-1995 provisions, determined in accordance with the following formula—
(NJS×AF×S)×ZZ+Ywhere—
N is the reckonable service which the member accrued in the office before the date on which the member retired, calculated under regulation 5(1) as though regulation 5(2) did not apply
JS is the number of years of qualifying judicial service that the member has, subject to a maximum of—
(i)15 years for an office specified in Table 1 or 2 in Schedule 1, or
(ii)20 years for an office specified in Table 3 in Schedule 1
AF is the accrual factor specified for the office in column 2 of Table 1, 2 or 3, as the case may be, of Schedule 2, relating to the member’s qualifying judicial service as if the member had continued to hold the office until the date on which the member reaches the normal pension age applicable for that office, subject to a maximum of—
(i)15 years for an office specified in Table 1 or 2 in Schedule 1, or
(ii)20 years for an office specified in Table 3 in Schedule 1
S is the appropriate annual salary of the judicial office held by the member immediately before their retirement and where the member held more than one judicial office immediately before retirement, reference is to the highest appropriate annual salary of those offices
Z is the period, or the aggregate of the periods, expressed in years and any fraction of a year during which the member held one or more eligible fee-paid judicial offices, disregarding any day in respect of which the conditions in regulation 4(2) (qualifying fee-paid days) are not met
Y is the period, expressed in years and any fraction of a year, beginning with the day on which the member retired and ending with the day on which the member reached the earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions.
(4) Where the number of years of qualifying judicial service at retirement is less than ten and is not an exact number of years, the interpolation referred to in paragraph (3)(a) is to be effected as follows—
(a) where the number of complete years of qualifying judicial service is less than five, 1/365 of a sixtieth for each additional day is to be added to the appropriate fraction;
(b) where the number of complete years of qualifying judicial service is five, 3/365 of a sixtieth for each additional day is to be added to the appropriate fraction;
(c) where the number of complete years of qualifying judicial service is greater than five, 8/365 of a sixtieth for each additional day is to be added to the appropriate fraction.
(5) The lump sum benefit must not exceed the figure calculated in accordance with sub-paragraphs (a) or (c) as appropriate—
(a) on retirement before the member’s earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions other than on the ground of ill health, or at or after the member’s earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions, the fraction of WS obtained under subparagraph (b);
(b) the fraction is determined in accordance with the scale set out in the Occupational Pension Schemes (Maximum Rate Lump Sum) Regulations 1987, but for the ‘period of service’ in that scale using the member’s qualifying judicial service;
(c) on retirement before the member’s earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions on the ground of ill-health, the fraction of WS obtained under sub-paragraph (d);
(d) the fraction is determined in accordance with the scale set out in the Occupational Pension Schemes (Maximum Rate Lump Sum) Regulations 1987, but for the ‘period of service’ in that scale using a value for the member’s qualifying judicial service as if the member had continued in eligible fee-paid judicial office until the date on which they reached their earliest normal pension age under the pre-1995 provisions.
(6) Where the maximum number of added units of benefit would (apart from this paragraph) be negative, it is instead nil.
(7) Any unit of added benefit purchased must not be taken into account for the purposes of determining the amount of the member’s reckonable service, or the length of the member’s qualifying judicial service.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2017/522/regulation/128F (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/judicial-pensions-fee-paid-judges-regulations-2017/regulation-128F
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.