- John Pascoe demands fair deal for all
- By CHRIS MERRITT
- The Australian
- 03/05/2013 Make a Comment
- Contributed by: Bewitched ( 20 articles in 2013 )
Chief Judge of the Federal Circuit Court - formerly the Federal Magistrates Court - John Pascoe, centre, at this week's sitting in Sydney to mark the name change.
SOON after giving thanks this week for his court's new name, John Pascoe outlined his next agenda: more judges on higher incomes who are subject to the same taxation as every other judge.
As Chief Judge of the Federal Circuit Court, he presides over an institution that deals with about 85 per cent of the nation's family law matters, faces a growing migration jurisdiction and is trying to recruit lawyers who can earn more doing fewer cases if they join the state District and County Courts.
Chief Judge Pascoe knows he is competing with the state courts and he has sent a formal submission to the Commonwealth Remuneration Tribunal arguing that his judges should be on the same incomes as District and County Court judges.
That submission, which was given to the tribunal within the past two months, has the potential to increase the incomes of his judges by $45,540.
After Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus endorsed the idea of a special review of the court's remuneration, Chief Judge Pascoe said he hoped the tribunal would deal with the matter quickly.
"As the attorney said, he is happy for the review to be undertaken outside the normal annual review of the courts," he said. "It is appropriate because it really is a review looking at work value."
If the court's submission is accepted in full the pay rise would more than compensate for the impact on the judges of the government's planned superannuation tax.
But Chief Judge Pascoe said the two issues needed to be considered separately. "I can see no reason why you would discriminate against one court by applying the changes in the tax regime to that court whilst exempting all of the others," he said.
While all other judges have been exempted from the planned tax, the government has not extended the exemption to the Federal Circuit Court, where judges do not have access to the judicial pension and instead have contributory superannuation schemes. Chief Judge Pascoe said he did not accept the argument the different pension arrangements justified the government's decision not to exempt his judges from the tax. "The difficulty we have is that it is almost impossible for the judges of this court to create anything like the retirement security that the other courts have with the judicial pension," he said.
"Every time Federal Circuit Court judges have to pay additional taxes it just puts them further and further behind.
"What is the justification for excluding one court at a particular level from the arrangements that apply to every other court?"
He believed his judges' exclusion from the pension had affected recruitment for the bench. "I feel this very keenly. If you have a look at the lists of judges in the NSW District Court and the Victorian County Court, what you will see is that those courts have been able to attract a very significant number of senior counsel to their ranks.
"In the case of the Federal Circuit Court we have one senior counsel who came to the court when it was first set up.
"We have been unable to attract very senior juniors and senior counsel because they look at the remuneration in our court - and the absence of the pension - and they go to other courts."
Chief Judge Pascoe said most family law matters were handled by his court and its general federal jurisdiction was expanding and becoming more complex.
"We need to be able to recruit at least people who are the equivalent of those being recruited to the state District Courts in order to do the work."
He said two new judges had recently joined the court and two more were expected.
But the court's workload in family law and migration matters was growing.
"The cases are getting harder, the hearings are taking longer and obviously you have more complex judgments to write," he said.
Since he had been Chief Judge "there have been at least 10 judicial appointments that were mooted but not made, on the basis of budgetary restraints".
In order to deal with its workload within its own time standards, Chief Judge Pascoe said the court needed at least 10 more judges, which would give it a bench of 75.
He welcomed the court's change of name from the Federal Magistrates Court and the fact that its former magistrates had been given the title of judge.
He believed the practical impact of the change would be an even greater broadening and deepening of the court's jurisdiction, making it a major federal trial court.
The new name for the court would also have a major beneficial impact on Aborigines, some of whom had been extremely reluctant to make use of it in family law matters because of the historical involvement of state magistrates in the removal of children from their families.
At Wednesday's ceremonial sitting to mark the change in titles, Chief Judge Pascoe said the change would not have come about without the commitment to reform of former attorney-general Nicola Roxon.
He said it was the first time an Australian court had changed its name to better reflect its work and the status of its judiciary.
"On behalf of the court, I thank Ms Roxon," Chief Judge Pascoe said.
As Chief Judge of the Federal Circuit Court, he presides over an institution that deals with about 85 per cent of the nation's family law matters, faces a growing migration jurisdiction and is trying to recruit lawyers who can earn more doing fewer cases if they join the state District and County Courts.
Chief Judge Pascoe knows he is competing with the state courts and he has sent a formal submission to the Commonwealth Remuneration Tribunal arguing that his judges should be on the same incomes as District and County Court judges.
That submission, which was given to the tribunal within the past two months, has the potential to increase the incomes of his judges by $45,540.
After Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus endorsed the idea of a special review of the court's remuneration, Chief Judge Pascoe said he hoped the tribunal would deal with the matter quickly.
"As the attorney said, he is happy for the review to be undertaken outside the normal annual review of the courts," he said. "It is appropriate because it really is a review looking at work value."
If the court's submission is accepted in full the pay rise would more than compensate for the impact on the judges of the government's planned superannuation tax.
But Chief Judge Pascoe said the two issues needed to be considered separately. "I can see no reason why you would discriminate against one court by applying the changes in the tax regime to that court whilst exempting all of the others," he said.
While all other judges have been exempted from the planned tax, the government has not extended the exemption to the Federal Circuit Court, where judges do not have access to the judicial pension and instead have contributory superannuation schemes. Chief Judge Pascoe said he did not accept the argument the different pension arrangements justified the government's decision not to exempt his judges from the tax. "The difficulty we have is that it is almost impossible for the judges of this court to create anything like the retirement security that the other courts have with the judicial pension," he said.
"Every time Federal Circuit Court judges have to pay additional taxes it just puts them further and further behind.
"What is the justification for excluding one court at a particular level from the arrangements that apply to every other court?"
He believed his judges' exclusion from the pension had affected recruitment for the bench. "I feel this very keenly. If you have a look at the lists of judges in the NSW District Court and the Victorian County Court, what you will see is that those courts have been able to attract a very significant number of senior counsel to their ranks.
"In the case of the Federal Circuit Court we have one senior counsel who came to the court when it was first set up.
"We have been unable to attract very senior juniors and senior counsel because they look at the remuneration in our court - and the absence of the pension - and they go to other courts."
Chief Judge Pascoe said most family law matters were handled by his court and its general federal jurisdiction was expanding and becoming more complex.
"We need to be able to recruit at least people who are the equivalent of those being recruited to the state District Courts in order to do the work."
He said two new judges had recently joined the court and two more were expected.
But the court's workload in family law and migration matters was growing.
"The cases are getting harder, the hearings are taking longer and obviously you have more complex judgments to write," he said.
Since he had been Chief Judge "there have been at least 10 judicial appointments that were mooted but not made, on the basis of budgetary restraints".
In order to deal with its workload within its own time standards, Chief Judge Pascoe said the court needed at least 10 more judges, which would give it a bench of 75.
He welcomed the court's change of name from the Federal Magistrates Court and the fact that its former magistrates had been given the title of judge.
He believed the practical impact of the change would be an even greater broadening and deepening of the court's jurisdiction, making it a major federal trial court.
The new name for the court would also have a major beneficial impact on Aborigines, some of whom had been extremely reluctant to make use of it in family law matters because of the historical involvement of state magistrates in the removal of children from their families.
At Wednesday's ceremonial sitting to mark the change in titles, Chief Judge Pascoe said the change would not have come about without the commitment to reform of former attorney-general Nicola Roxon.
He said it was the first time an Australian court had changed its name to better reflect its work and the status of its judiciary.
"On behalf of the court, I thank Ms Roxon," Chief Judge Pascoe said.
Source: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/legal-affairs/john-pascoe-demands-fair-deal-for-all/story-e6frg97x-1226634218086
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