Judges Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. J-1)

Marginal note:Apportionment of annuities among surviving children

• 48 (1) If, in computing the annuities to be paid under subsection 47(3) to the children of a judge referred to in that subsection, it is determined that there are more than four children of the judge to whom an annuity shall be paid, the total amount of the annuities paid shall be apportioned among the children in the shares that the Minister considers just and proper under the circumstances.

• Marginal note:Children’s annuities, to whom paid

  (2) If an annuity under this Act is paid to a child of a judge, payment shall, if the child is less than 18 years of age, be made to the person having the custody and control of the child or, if there is no person having the custody and control of the child, to any person that the Minister directs and, for the purposes of this subsection, the survivor of the judge, except if the child is living apart from the survivor, shall be presumed, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, to be the person having the custody and control of the child.

Regulations concerning Inheritance Taxes

Marginal note:Payment of certain taxes out of C.R.F.

49 The Governor in Council may make regulations providing for the payment out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, on the payment of an annuity under this Act to the survivor or children of a judge or a retired judge, of the whole or any part of the portion of any estate, legacy, succession or inheritance duties or taxes that are payable by the survivor or children with respect to the annuity, as is determined in accordance with the regulations to be attributable to that annuity, and prescribing the amount by which and the manner in which the annuity in that case shall be reduced.

Judges’ Contributions toward Annuities

Marginal note:Judges appointed before February 17, 1975

• 50 (1) Every judge appointed before February 17, 1975 to hold office as a judge of a superior or county court shall, by reservation from the judge’s salary under this Act, contribute to the Consolidated Revenue Fund one and one-half per cent of that salary.

• Marginal note:Judges appointed after February 16, 1975

  (2) Every judge appointed after February 16, 1975 to whom subsection (1) does not apply, shall, by reservation from the judge’s salary under this Act, contribute

  • (a) to the Consolidated Revenue Fund an amount equal to six per cent of that salary; and

  • (b) to the Supplementary Retirement Benefits Account established in the accounts of Canada pursuant to the Supplementary Retirement Benefits Act,

    • (i) prior to 1977, an amount equal to one-half of one per cent of that salary, and

    • (ii) commencing with the month of January 1977, an amount equal to one per cent of that salary.

• Marginal note:Adjustment of contributions

  (2.1) A supernumerary judge, a judge who continues in judicial office after having been in judicial office for at least 15 years and whose combined age and number of years in judicial office is not less than 80, a judge of the Supreme Court of Canada who has continued in judicial office on that Court for at least 10 years, or a judge referred to in section 41.1 is not required to contribute under subsections (1) and (2) but is required to contribute, by reservation from salary, to the Supplementary Retirement Benefits Account at a rate of one per cent of his or her salary.

• Marginal note:Interest

  (2.2) Interest is payable on all contributions refunded as a result of the application of subsection (2.1) at the rate prescribed under the Income Tax Act for amounts payable by the Minister of National Revenue as refunds of overpayments of tax under that Act.

• Marginal note:Income Tax Act

  (3) For the purposes of the Income Tax Act, the amounts contributed by a judge pursuant to subsection (1), (2) or (2.1) are deemed to be contributed to or under a registered pension plan.

• Marginal note:Amounts to be credited to S.R.B. Account

  (4) Where any amount is paid into the Supplementary Retirement Benefits Account pursuant to paragraph (2)(b), an amount equal to the amount so paid shall be credited to that Account.

• Marginal note:Definition of judicial office

  (5) In this section, judicial office includes the office of an associate judge.

Marginal note:Return of contributions if no annuity

• 51 (1) If a judge has ceased to hold office otherwise than by reason of death and, at the time he or she ceased to hold office, no annuity under this Act was granted or could be paid to that judge, there shall be paid to the judge, in respect of his or her having ceased to hold that office, an amount equal to the total contributions made by him or her under subsection 50(1) or paragraph 50(2)(a), together with interest, if any, calculated in accordance with subsection (4).

• Marginal note:Return of contributions if annuity

  (2) If a judge to whom subsection 50(1) applies has ceased to hold office otherwise than by reason of death and that judge is granted or paid an annuity under this Act, there shall be paid to the judge in respect of his or her having ceased to hold that office an amount equal to the total contributions made by the judge under subsection 50(1), together with interest, if any, calculated in accordance with subsection (4), if,

  • (a) at the time the judge ceased to hold office, there is no person to whom an annuity under this Act could be paid in respect of the judge on his or her death; or

  • (b) at any time after the judge ceased to hold office but before his or her death, all persons to whom an annuity under this Act could be paid in respect of the judge on his or her death have died or ceased to be eligible to be paid an annuity.

• Marginal note:Death benefit

  (3) Where, on or at any time after the death of a judge who died while holding office, or the death of a judge who died after ceasing to hold office but to whom no amount has been paid under subsection (1) or (2), there is no person or there is no longer any person to whom an annuity under this Act may be paid in respect of the judge, any amount by which

  • (a) the total contributions made by the judge under subsection 50(1) or paragraph 50(2)(a), together with interest, if any, calculated pursuant to subsection (4),

  exceeds

  • (b) the total amount, if any, paid to or in respect of the judge as annuity payments under this Act,

  shall thereupon be paid as a death benefit to the estate of the judge or, if less than one thousand dollars, as the Minister may direct.

• Marginal note:Interest on payments and amounts of contributions

  (4) Where an amount becomes payable under subsection (1), (2) or (3) in respect of contributions made by a judge under subsection 50(1) or paragraph 50(2)(a), the Minister shall

  • (a) determine the total amount of contributions that have been made under that provision by the judge in respect of each year, in this subsection called a “contribution year”, in which contributions were made by the judge; and

  • (b) calculate interest on the amount determined under paragraph (a) in respect of each contribution year, compounded annually,

    • (i) in respect of each contribution year before 1997,

      • (A) at the rate of four per cent from December 31 of the contribution year to December 31, 1996, and

      • (B) at the rate prescribed under the Income Tax Act for amounts payable by the Minister of National Revenue as refunds of overpayments of tax under that Act in effect from time to time, from December 31, 1996 to December 31 of the year immediately before the year in which the amount in respect of contributions made by the judge becomes payable, and

    • (ii) in respect of the 1997 contribution year and each contribution year after 1997, at the rate mentioned in clause (i)(B) from December 31 of the contribution year to December 31 of the year immediately before the year in which the amount in respect of contributions made by the judge becomes payable.

Diversion Under Financial Support Order

Marginal note:Diversion of payments to satisfy financial support order

• 52 (1) If a court in Canada of competent jurisdiction has made an order requiring a recipient of an annuity or other amount payable under section 42, 43, 43.1, 44, 44.1 or 44.2 or subsection 51(1) to pay financial support, amounts so payable to the recipient are subject to being diverted to the person named in the order in accordance with Part II of the Garnishment, Attachment and Pension Diversion Act.

• Marginal note:Payment deemed to be to former judge

  (2) For the purposes of this Part, any payment made pursuant to subsection (1) shall be deemed to have been made to the former judge in respect of whom the payment was made.

Division of Judge’s Annuity Benefits on Conjugal Breakdown

Marginal note:Definitions

52.1 The following definitions apply in this section and in sections 52.11 to 52.22.

agreement

agreement means an agreement referred to in subparagraph 52.11(2)(b)(ii). (accord)

annuity

annuity means an annuity payable under section 42, 43 or 43.1. (pension)

annuity benefit

annuity benefit means an annuity or a return of contributions payable under section 51, and includes amounts payable to a judge under the Supplementary Retirement Benefits Act. (prestation de pension)

application

application means an application made under subsection 52.11(1). (demande)

court order

court order means an order referred to in paragraph 52.11(2)(a) or subparagraph 52.11(2)(b)(i). (ordonnance)

interested party

interested party, in relation to an application for division of a judge’s annuity benefits, means the judge or the spouse, former spouse or former common-law partner with whom those benefits would be divided under the application. (intéressé)

judge

judge includes a former judge who has been granted or paid an annuity. (juge)

Minister

Minister[Repealed, 2023, c. 18, s. 3]

prescribed

prescribed means prescribed by regulation. (Version anglaise seulement)

spouse

spouse, in relation to a judge, includes a person who is a party to a void marriage with the judge. (époux)

Marginal note:Application for division

• 52.11 (1) A judge or a spouse, former spouse or former common-law partner of a judge may, in the circumstances described in subsection (2), apply in accordance with the regulations for the division of the judge’s annuity benefits between the judge and the spouse, former spouse or former common-law partner.

• Marginal note:When application may be made

  (2) An application may be made under the following circumstances:

  • (a) where a court of competent jurisdiction in Canada, in proceedings in relation to divorce, annulment of marriage or separation, has made an order that provides for the annuity benefits to be divided between the interested parties; or

  • (b) where the interested parties have been living separate and apart for a period of one year or more and, either before or after they began to live separate and apart,

    • (i) a court of competent jurisdiction in Canada has made an order that provides for the annuity benefits to be divided between them, or

    • (ii) the interested parties have entered into a written agreement that provides for the annuity benefits to be divided between them.

• Marginal note:Notice to interested parties

  (3) The Minister shall send to each interested party in accordance with the regulations a notice of the receipt of an application.

Marginal note:Objections by interested parties

• 52.12 (1) An interested party who objects to the division of annuity benefits on any of the grounds described in subsection (2) may submit a notice of objection in writing in accordance with the regulations within 90 days after the day on which notice of the receipt of the application is sent to the interested party under subsection 52.11(3).

• Marginal note:Grounds for objection

  (2) The grounds for objection are as follows:

  • (a) the court order or agreement on which the application is based has been varied or is of no force or effect;

  • (b) the terms of the court order or agreement have been or are being satisfied by other means; or

  • (c) proceedings have been commenced in a court of competent jurisdiction in Canada to appeal or review the court order or challenge the terms of the agreement.

• Marginal note:Documentary evidence

  (3) An interested party who submits a notice of objection shall include with that notice documentary evidence to establish the grounds for objection.

Marginal note:Approval of division

• 52.13 (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), the Minister shall, as soon as is practicable after the Minister is satisfied that an application meets the requirements of this Act, approve the division of annuity benefits in respect of which the application is made.

• Marginal note:When decision to be deferred

  (2) When an interested party submits a notice of objection in accordance with section 52.12, the Minister shall

  • (a) if the objection is made on the grounds referred to in paragraph 52.12(2)(a) or (b), defer a decision on the application until the Minister is able to ascertain to his or her satisfaction whether those grounds have been established; and

  • (b) if the objection is made on the grounds referred to in paragraph 52.12(2)(c), defer a decision on the application until the final disposition of the proceedings on which those grounds are based.

• Marginal note:Refusal of division

  (3) The Minister shall refuse to approve the division of annuity benefits if

  • (a) the application is withdrawn in accord­ance with the regulations;

  • (b) a notice of objection has been submitted on grounds referred to in paragraph 52.12(2)(a) or (b) and the Minister is satisfied that those grounds have been established and constitute sufficient reason to refuse the division;

  • (c) a notice of objection has been submitted on grounds referred to in paragraph 52.12(2)(c) and the court order or agreement is of no force or effect as a result of the proceedings referred to in that paragraph;

  • (d) the period of cohabitation of the judge and the spouse, former spouse or former common-law partner cannot be determined under subsection 52.14(6); or

  • (e) the Minister is satisfied, based on evidence submitted by any person, that it would not be just to approve the division.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (4) Notwithstanding subsection (3), the Minister may approve the division of annuity benefits on the basis of an order of a court issued pursuant to any proceedings referred to in paragraph 52.12(2)(c).

• Marginal note:Transitional

  (5) The Minister may approve the division of the annuity benefits even though the court order or agreement on which the application is based was made or entered into before the day on which subsection 52.11(1) comes into force.