Judicial compensation commissions

Overview

The Supreme Court of Canada has imposed a constitutional obligation on provincial governments to use an independent commission process to set the compensation for judicial officers, including Provincial Court judges and Court of King’s Bench applications judges.

Several pieces of provincial legislation are relevant to the judicial compensation commission process:

• Judicature Act
  • outlines the commissions’ functions
• Provincial Court Judges and Applications Judges Compensation Regulation
  • sets out judges’ salary and benefits
• Provincial Judges and Applications Judges Registered and Unregistered Pension Plans
  • sets out judges’ pension benefits
• compensation commission regulation
  • used to establish a specific commission
  • for example, the Provincial Court Judges and Applications Judges 2021 Compensation Commission Regulation was used to create the 2021 commission

Scope of commissions

Every 4 years, the commission reviews and recommends changes in compensation for:

• Provincial Court judges
• Court of King’s Bench applications judges

For both groups, this includes the following for the next 4 years:

• salary rates
• design and level of pension benefits
• types and kinds of benefits and allowances
• any other issues relevant to financial security that the commission agreed to resolve

Judicial compensation review

In 1997, the Supreme Court of Canada determined that there is a constitutional obligation on governments to set compensation for judicial officers through an independent, objective and effective commission process.

2021 Commission public hearing

An independent Judicial Compensation Commission was established under Alberta’s Judicature Act to review and recommend the appropriate level of compensation for the Provincial Court of Alberta judges and Court of King's Bench applications judges, for the period April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2025.

The Commission will hold a public hearing in 2023.

When and where

Date: February 1 to 3, 2023
Time: 10 am to 4:30 pm

Location:
Edmonton Law Courts
1A Sir Winston Churchill Square
Edmonton, Alberta  T5J 0R2

Electronic written submissions

The commission invites electronic written submissions from interested members of the public on the appropriate level of compensation for judges and applications judges for the period of April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2025.

The deadline to send electronic written submissions is on or before January 16, 2023.

Links to all written submissions received by the commission will be posted on this page. A person who has filed a written submission may be required to attend the public hearing and respond to questions from:

• the Judicial Compensation Commission
• counsel for the Government of Alberta
• counsel for the Alberta Provincial Judges' Association

Submission details

A written submission should include:

• your name
• your mailing address
• your email address
• your telephone number
• a summary of your comments (if they are lengthy)

The commission may permit oral submissions during the public hearing. (Indicate if you want to make an oral submission in addition to your written submission.)

Submission deadline

The deadline to send electronic written submissions is on or before January 16, 2023.

Please email your submission to:

Ruth Fast
Legal Counsel
Alberta Justice
Email: [email protected]

Posted submissions

Links to electronic written submissions will be posted once they are available.

Reports

View the reports of past judicial compensation commissions

Contact

To learn more, contact:

Ruth Fast
Legal Counsel
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 780-644-7696
Toll free: 310-0000 before the phone number (in Alberta)