# The Judicial Pensions Regulations 2022, Regulation 49: Exercise of partial retirement option

Extent: E+W+S+N.I.

(1) This regulation applies if—
(a) a person (P) is an active member of this scheme in relation to a continuous period of pensionable service;
(b) P has reached normal minimum pension age;
(c) the terms of P’s appointment have changed and as a result of that change the amount of P’s annual pensionable earnings in respect of service in a particular office is reduced to 80% of the amount before the change or less; and
(d) P would be entitled to the immediate payment of a full retirement pension if P left pensionable service and claimed payment of the pension in respect of that particular office.
(2) P may opt to continue in pensionable service but claim payment of the whole or part only of P’s accrued pensions in respect of a particular office for the continuous period of pensionable service before P’s pensionable earnings were reduced (“partial retirement option”).
(3) P may not exercise a partial retirement option more than once in respect of a particular judicial office.
(4) Where P holds more than one judicial office—
(a) P may exercise a partial retirement option separately in relation to each office held; and
(b) P may only access the pension accrued in relation to the particular office or offices in respect of which P is exercising the partial retirement option.
(5) For the purposes of calculating P’s annual pensionable earnings in relation to paragraph (1)(c) where P is a fee-paid office holder, the amount of pensionable earnings that P receives in respect of a particular office is calculated as follows—
Z per annum, where:
Z=JK where—
J means the total fee-paid income in respect of that office over the preceding three years, or, if less than three years, over the period since P was first appointed to that office;
K means the lesser of—
(a) 3; or
(b) the period in years (and a fraction of a year, determined by complete months) from the first sitting day in that particular office until the date of partial retirement;
“complete month” includes an incomplete month that consists of at least 16 days; and
Z means the annualised total of fees from that particular office.
(6) Where P holds multiple assignments within the First-tier Tribunal or the Upper Tribunal—
(a) the reduction in earnings in paragraph (1)(c) refers to service in each chamber of the relevant tribunal; and
(b) in paragraph (5) references to an office are to be taken as references to an assignment to a tribunal chamber.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2022/319/regulation/49 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/judicial-pensions-regulations-2022/regulation-49
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.