CONFIDENTIAL
8.
An outside candidate would presumably hope to serve for something like 12 or 15 years and to earn a substantial pension during his service. In settling the terms of his appointment, his previous experience could perhaps be taken into account for pensions purposes, eg by allowing him "added years" or treating each year of service as 12 years or even two.
9.
If the retiring ages of Supreme Court Judges are to be raised, then it is for consideration whether also to raise those of the District Judges to 60. While the immediate necessity to do this in order to attract outside candidates is no doubt less than for the Supreme Court, it would in the longer term widen the scope for suitable outside appointments. It would also to some extent relieve any hard feelings the present District Judges might have if the Supreme Court retiring age is raised to 65. Furthermore it would underline the fact that District Judges, like Supreme Court Judges, are not on the same terms and conditions as civil servants.
10.
Whether or not the retiring age of District Judges is raised to 60, it is suggested that they should be given formal security of tenure, comparable to that of Supreme Court Judges, under local legislation providing that they may be removed from office before 60 by the Governor only for inability or misconduct following an investigation by a tribunal consisting of a chairman and two members appointed on the advice of the Chief Justice from among persons who are or have been judges. Once again, power could be taken to appoint for a fixed term of years.
11.
It is to be hoped of course that an outside appointee to the Supreme Court will have had substantial experience of civil and commercial work in private practice.
12.
In order to give appointees to the District Court some experience of this sort of work, consideration could perhaps be given to sending any magistrate or crown counsel selected for appointment to the Court on a course in suitable English, Australian or New Zealand chambers before he takes up his appointment.
13.
It is understood that magistrates do little civil work at present, and any steps that could be taken to widen their civil experience would be welcome. The establishment of a magistrates' court to deal with small civil claims might be useful in this respect.
14.
It seems clearly desirable to amend Colonial Regulations to make it quite plain that the various disciplinary provisions apt for administrative officers but not appropriate to judicial officers have no application to judges and magistrates. Section 8(2) of the Pensions Ordinance seems inappropriate for magistrates as well as for judges, who are excepted from it.
15.
It is perhaps also worth considering whether magistrates, as well as District Judges, could be given a statutory security of temure. It is appreciated that many serve on contract for
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CONFIDENTIAT
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