Courting Retirees to Return to Judicial Duties

After more than three decades as a judge, Carlos Velarde retired from the bench in December to spend time with his wife and work on his hobby--collecting Olympic memorabilia.

But the 71-year-old jurist was home only two months before he began feeling anxious.

“I was born during the Depression and I’ve worked all my life,” said Velarde, who has thick gray hair and a deep voice. “I was getting nervous at home with all that retirement.”

So he returned to the Los Angeles Superior Court part time in February to handle criminal trials that his fellow judges had trouble fitting into their schedules.

As more judges leave the bench to become private jurists and mediators, California’s Superior Courts are increasingly relying on the services of retired judges like Velarde to fill vacant spots and ease case overload.

Courts statewide are using the equivalent of 120 full-time judges, compared with 108 judges five years ago. During the same period, the number of retired judges hearing cases in Los Angeles County Superior Court increased from 30 to 46.

“We are at the highest level we’ve ever been,” said Lynn Holton, spokeswoman for the Judicial Council of California. “And it keeps going up. Many courts would be in dire straits without the assigned judges.”

Courts also have been using more retired judges in recent years because of an increasing workload and Gov. Gray Davis’ slowness in appointing new judges. Legislation such as Proposition 36, the drug treatment ballot initiative, has placed a strain on judicial resources. Meanwhile, there are 73 vacancies in Superior Courts statewide, including 20 in Los Angeles County.

Judges return to the courtroom for a variety of reasons. Some are bored in retirement and want to work part time. Others feel a responsibility to help ease the shortage. But all are aware of the financial benefits of working as an assigned judge. Such judges, who have to be age 60 to retire, are paid $490 a day while continuing to receive their pensions of up to $99,789 annually. Active Superior Court judges make more than $133,000 annually.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Rutberg retired in January 1997 after spending 20 years on the bench--the required time to receive a full pension. That same month, he began hearing cases as a retired judge.

“I’m fully vested in my retirement, and I wanted to receive the benefits I am entitled to,” said Rutberg, who handles civil and criminal cases. “I wanted to continue serving the public as a judge. We’re short judges here in this court. The court needs me.”

California Chief Justice Ronald M. George, who makes the assignments, said he is thankful that experienced judges are willing to return to work. But George said retired judges should supplement permanent ones--not replace them.

“There may always be a role for assigned judges to help out,” George said. “But in terms of the day-to-day needs, we shouldn’t have to meet that with assigned judges.”

The Assigned Judges Program was started in the 1980s to fill spots when judges went on sick leave or vacation or took time off to attend training seminars. Now the statewide program has an $18-million annual budget.

“They are a necessity,” said James A. Bascue, presiding judge of Los Angeles Superior Court, which pays out nearly $4 million for the program. “The list of retirees is growing faster than the governor’s appointments.”

The majority of the 379 assigned judges statewide serve an average of 60 to 90 days a year, but about 10% work more than 200 days. Such judges can make more than they did while they were active because of the combination of pension and daily wages.

Every month, 350 to 450 requests are made for assigned judges in California. Often, the Administrative Office of the Courts has to give priority to courts in danger of dismissing criminal cases.

In Los Angeles, court officials said their pool of 70 available judges is not large enough to meet the daily needs. When administrators cannot track down enough of them, courtrooms are closed and other judges are forced to increase their caseload.

The use of retired judges has drawn some criticism from lawyers, who point out that such jurists do not have to face election as do full-time judges.

To enter the program, retired judges must be in good standing with the Commission on Judicial Performance and receive a positive recommendation from the presiding judge of their former court. Retired judges also undergo annual performance evaluations by the courts to which they are assigned.

In February 2000, Chief Justice George created the eligibility requirements for assigned judges and developed a formal complaint process. “Frankly, I had a real concern . . . that I was assigning judges who were not measuring up to certain standards,” he said. “Now they are up to the same standards, but they are certainly not accountable to the electorate.”

Each year, there are about 40 complaints against assigned judges. The majority are from dissatisfied civil litigants, but about one-fourth involve issues such as alleged discrimination or harassment. On average, one judge per year is removed from the program, George said.

Bascue said he is cautious about which retired judges he invites back on the bench. “They are representing the Los Angeles Superior Court, so we are very concerned about quality,” he said.

Robert W. Parkin retired in February 2000 after 15 years on the bench and spent time playing golf and working on his house. But a month later, he was asked to return to the courthouse to hear the overload of civil cases. As Los Angeles County’s former presiding judge, Parkin knew how badly strained the courts were and said he couldn’t leave his former colleagues in the lurch.

“I had been there, so I was glad to give them a hand to help deal with this backlog,” he said. “Some of these cases have been kicking around for a number of years.”

Parkin now hears medical malpractice, sexual harassment and wrongful termination cases. The 69-year-old judge is also building a private judging practice to which he plans to devote more attention when the public caseload lightens.

Velarde said he does not want to switch from public to private judging. He knows that with his monthly pension of $8,315 and daily pay, he still makes a good income and is able to financially help out his grandchildren.

“That was never a consideration for me,” he said. “This is not nearly as lucrative as private judging, but it’s good.”