Supreme Court Rules On Time Limits For Bringing Claims In Part-Time Judges' Case

The Supreme Court has handed down a judgment in Miller and others v Ministry of Justice [2019] UKSC 60 (Miller) - the latest decision to focus on pension rights for part-time judges.

The question for the Supreme Court in Miller was when does time start to run for claims brought by part-time judges in relation to rights to a pension under the Part-time Workers' Directive (Directive 97/81) (the PTW Directive) as applied in the UK by the Part-time Workers' (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000 (SI 2000/1551) (the PTW Regulations)?

Key action points for trustees / employers

1. The judges were in time if they brought a claim within three months of the point of retirement

   The Supreme Court allowed the judges' appeal, ruling that a part-time judge may properly complain both during his period of service (i.e. that their terms of office were discriminatory compared to full time judges in not including provision for a future pension) and/or at the point of retirement (i.e. that there has been a failure at this point to make a pension available and this amounts to less favourable treatment).

2. The judges did not have to bring a claim during or immediately after their period of service

   The judges brought their claims on the grounds that their terms of office were discriminatory compared to full time judges in not including provision for a future pension. The court held that their ability to bring a claim during or immediately after their periods of service did not exclude their right to bring a claim at the point of retirement. The former does not exclude the latter.

3. The impact of the judgment will be significant for the Ministry of Justice

   The impact of the Supreme Court's judgment on the Ministry of Justice will be significant, with an estimated 1,000 judges having brought claims or relying on the moratorium.

4. The judgment could have a broader impact on UK pension schemes

   The judgment in Miller focused on part-time, fee-paid judges and their rights under various judicial pension schemes. The logic of the judgment could, however, have important consequences for other part-time worker claims and for pension discrimination claims more widely. Whether or not such claims are ultimately successful, trustees and employers should be aware that these arguments could be run by claimants and their advisers when they are otherwise out of time to bring a claim. So the point of retirement could be the date from which the time limit for...