(a)  Whenever any person engaged as a judge:

(1)  On or before July 2, 1997 has served as a justice of the supreme court, the superior court, the family court, the district court, or any combination thereof for twenty (20) years, or has so served for ten (10) years and has reached the age of sixty-five (65) years, that justice may retire from active service and thereafter the justice shall receive annually during life a sum equal to three-fourths (¾) of the annual salary that the justice was receiving at the time of retirement;

(2)  Subsequent to July 2, 1997 and prior to January 1, 2009, has served as a justice of the supreme court, the superior court, the family court, the district court or any combination thereof, for twenty (20) years, or has so served for ten (10) years and has reached the age of sixty-five (65) years, said justice may retire from active service and thereafter said justice shall receive annually during life a sum equal to three-fourths (¾) of his or her average highest three (3) consecutive years of compensation;

(3)  On or after January 1, 2009, has served as a justice of the supreme court, the superior court, the family court, the district court or any combination thereof, for twenty (20) years, or has so served for ten (10) years and has reached the age of sixty-five (65) years, said justice may retire from active service and thereafter said justice shall receive annually during life a sum equal to seventy percent (70%) of his or her average highest three (3) consecutive years of compensation.

(4)  On or after July 1, 2009, shall have served as a justice of the supreme court, the superior court, the family court, the district court, or any of them for twenty (20) years, or has served for ten (10) years, and reached the age of sixty-five (65) years, said justice may retire from regular active service and thereafter said justice shall receive annually during his or her life a sum equal to sixty-five percent (65%) of his or her average highest five (5) consecutive years of compensation.

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Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 8-3-7

  • Chief judge: The judge who has primary responsibility for the administration of a court but also decides cases; chief judges are determined by seniority.
  • magistrate: may be construed to mean a justice, or a clerk acting as a justice, of a district court. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-16
  • person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6

(b)  Whenever a justice or magistrate shall be granted a leave of absence without pay, such absence shall not be credited towards active service time for the purposes of retirement.

(c)  Any justice in any of the courts who shall retire in accordance with the provisions of this section or § 36-9-5 may, at his or her own request and at the direction of the chief justice of the supreme court, subject to the retiree’s physical and mental competence, be assigned to perform such services as an associate justice of the superior court, or the family court, or the district court as the presiding justice of the superior court, or the chief judge of the family court, or the district shall prescribe. When so assigned and performing such service, the justice shall have all the powers and authority of an associate justice of the superior court, the family court, or the district court but otherwise shall have no powers nor be authorized to perform any judicial duties. Such a retired justice shall not be counted in the number of judges provided by law for the superior court, the family court, or the district court.

(d)  Any justice of the supreme court who shall retire in accordance with the provisions of this section shall at the direction of the chief justice of the supreme court, subject to the retiree’s physical and mental competence, be assigned to perform such services as an associate justice of the supreme court as the chief justice of the supreme court shall prescribe. When so assigned and performing such services, the retiree shall have all the powers and authority of an associate justice of the supreme court, but otherwise he or she shall have no powers nor be authorized to perform any judicial duties relating to the supreme court, except as authorized under § 8-1-1. Such a retired justice shall not be counted in the number of justices provided by law for the supreme court.

History of Section.
C.P.A. 1905, § 29; G.L. 1909, ch. 274, § 2; P.L. 1917, ch. 1475, § 2; P.L. 1922, ch. 2229, § 1; G.L. 1923, ch. 324, § 2; P.L. 1926, ch. 771, § 2; G.L. 1938, ch. 497, § 2; P.L. 1948, ch. 2084, § 1; P.L. 1956, ch. 3832, § 1; G.L. 1956, § 8-3-7; P.L. 1959, ch. 2, § 1; P.L. 1970, ch. 300, § 1; P.L. 1973, ch. 163, § 1; P.L. 1979, ch. 256, § 2; P.L. 1983, ch. 76, § 1; P.L. 1997, ch. 93, § 1; P.L. 2005, ch. 165, § 1; P.L. 2007, ch. 126, § 1; P.L. 2007, ch. 179, § 1; P.L. 2008, ch. 100, art. 35, § 1; P.L. 2009, ch. 68, art. 7, § 5; P.L. 2012, ch. 415, § 10.