*/
Part-time Recorders are not entitled to judicial pensions, the Court of Appeal has held.
O’Brien v Department for Constitutional Affairs [2008] EWCA Civ 1448 concerned a part-time Recorder who sat from 1978 until he retired in 2005. Recorders usually continue in practice as a solicitor or barrister while sitting part-time.
Dermot O’Brien was ineligible for a pro-rata’d judicial pension because of a regulation excluding judicial office holders who are remunerated on a daily fee-paid basis. He claimed this amounted to unlawful discrimination against him as a part-time worker.
He argued that the relevant regulation, reg 17 of the Part-time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000, was incompatible with the Part-time Workers Framework Directive 97/81/EC, and should be disapplied. However, Lord Justice Maurice Kay and two judges found that judicial office holders are not “workers” in the sense of the regulation, and so there was no incompatibility.
O’Brien v Department for Constitutional Affairs [2008] EWCA Civ 1448 concerned a part-time Recorder who sat from 1978 until he retired in 2005. Recorders usually continue in practice as a solicitor or barrister while sitting part-time.
Dermot O’Brien was ineligible for a pro-rata’d judicial pension because of a regulation excluding judicial office holders who are remunerated on a daily fee-paid basis. He claimed this amounted to unlawful discrimination against him as a part-time worker.
He argued that the relevant regulation, reg 17 of the Part-time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000, was incompatible with the Part-time Workers Framework Directive 97/81/EC, and should be disapplied. However, Lord Justice Maurice Kay and two judges found that judicial office holders are not “workers” in the sense of the regulation, and so there was no incompatibility.
Part-time Recorders are not entitled to judicial pensions, the Court of Appeal has held.
The age of criminal responsibility, extreme weather and conflict resolution – plus, new protocol for reporting bullying at the Bar
By David Green
Mário Barroso, Head of R&D and Method Development at AlphaBiolabs, examines the forensic science underpinning hair drug testing, its evidential scope and limitations, and why it remains the gold standard for evidencing patterns of drug use in family proceedings
Unlocking your aged debt to fund your tax in one easy step. By Philip N Bristow
Clement Cowley, Partner at The Penny Group, discusses the upcoming changes to pensions and Inheritance Tax and the potential impact on your financial future
Save the Children UK is the latest charity to benefit from a £500 donation from AlphaBiolabs via the company’s Giving Back initiative
The Chief Legal Officer to the Metropolitan Police, barrister Brett Welch, tells Anthony Inglese CB about his mission and the work to turn the Met around
Barrister apprenticeships – shortly to provide the fourth pathway to the Bar – are an ideal opportunity to support local talent and ‘grow your own’, say Tim Coulson and Dr Jane Dennehy
Grok around and find out – or not? Mariya Peykova investigates the nudification scandal, what the law has to say about sexually explicit deepfakes, and whether stronger regulation is needed
Oliver Lewis spotlights an overlooked yet rapidly evolving area of law – coercive and controlling behaviour within care contexts
For one night only at Middle Temple Hall (Sunday 26 July 2026) – Abigail Bright introduces the famed annual fundraising theatrical event. This year, Martin Shaw and Jason Watkins perform John Mortimer’s The Dock Brief, a mixture of farce and pathos and all in support of the work of the Kalisher Trust in its 30th year
