A battle has been roiling in the courts over whether judges in Los Angeles County are entitled to a long-standing benefits program that boosts their pay well above that of their colleagues all across California.
The California Supreme Court last week refused to review an appeals court decision ruling unconstitutional more than $46,000 in benefits each judge receives from the county, opening up the possibility that judges here might be taking a steep pay cut in the near future.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Saturday, January 10, 2009 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 3 inches; 129 words Type of Material: Correction
Judges' pay: An article and chart in the California section Jan. 3 about Los Angeles County judges' salaries erred in reporting what deputy district attorneys earn. The article, about legal challenges to a benefits program that means L.A. judges earn more than other judges in the state, said some deputy district attorneys in the county are paid $251,020 in salary and benefits (compared with $249,413 in salary and benefits for a judge in L.A. County). While in theory that is the amount a deputy district attorney could earn under the current benefits system, district attorney's office spokeswoman Jane Robison said deputy district attorneys at the top salary level at this time are part of an earlier benefits system and can receive a maximum of $234,171 in salary and benefits.
With the benefits, judges in L.A. County each receive a total of $249,413 annually. By contrast, the base salary for judges statewide is $192,386, including benefits. Although some counties provide additional money to judges -- as much as $20,000 -- Los Angeles County judges receive by far the most.
L.A. County judges and their advocates say that the cut would put their pay below that of some prosecutors and even court commissioners, and that there would be little incentive for talented attorneys to serve the public by becoming judges. Critics say the cash perks, which supplement the state-paid salary and benefits, are an illegal use of county taxpayers' money for the politically influential L.A. County bench.
At least two judges have publicly said they will be leaving the bench because of the possible cut. A "significant" number of others have mentioned they are considering doing the same, said Judge Charles "Tim" McCoy, the county's incoming presiding judge.
State Chief Justice Ronald George said although he agreed that the benefits are needed for recruitment, the existing pay system is unfair to judges in other parts of the state, some of whom live in such areas as San Francisco with comparable costs of living.
"I think that there's a lot of feeling around the state that whatever is needed in one county is just as well justified in another county," he said in an interview this week.
The benefits, which amount to about 30% of the state-paid salary and cost L.A. County about $21 million in 2007, have been paid since the 1980s.
A 2006 lawsuit brought by Washington, D.C.-based conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch contended that all county-funded benefits should have been turned off after a 1997 law put judges on the state payroll. Lawyers for the group argued that the perks, some of which can be taken in the form of taxable income, were an "unconscionable waste of taxpayer funds" because comparable perks are provided by the state.
