5-1-106. Retirement of judges of the supreme court or district courts; pension; assignment of retired judges.

(a) A judge of the supreme court or district courts shall retire when he attains the age of seventy (70) years. A judge is eligible for retirement when he has served as a judge of the supreme court, a district court or both for:

(i) Not less than eighteen (18) years;

(ii) Not less than fifteen (15) years and is sixty-five (65) years of age or more;

(iii) Not less than twelve (12) years and is seventy (70) years of age or more;

(iv) Not less than six (6) consecutive years and is sixty-five (65) years of age or more;

(v) Less than six (6) years but continuously from the date of appointment to the age of seventy (70) years;

(vi) Not less than twelve (12) years and is fifty-five (55) years of age or more;

(vii) Not less than six (6) years and dies in office or is retired by the supreme court for disability.

(b) Retired judges shall receive a maximum lifetime annual pension of fifty percent (50%) of the salary currently authorized by law for judges of the court from which they retired. The pension of a judge retiring under paragraph (a)(iv), (v), (vi) or (vii) of this section shall be that proportion of the maximum allowable pension which the aggregate number of years of his judicial service bears to eighteen (18) years. The pension shall increase or diminish proportionately as salaries of judges of the respective courts change. The pension of any judge who retires under paragraph (a)(iv) of this section at the age of seventy (70) with not less than six (6) but less than twelve (12) years service shall be that proportion of the maximum allowable pension which the aggregate number of years of judicial service bears to twelve (12) years.

(c) To retire and receive a pension, a judge shall notify in writing the governor and the state auditor the date he elects to retire and shall furnish with the notice an affidavit showing the date and place of his birth and his service as a judge entitling him to a pension, provided, that a judge whose service is terminated by expiration of the term for which he is elected or appointed and whose service is such as to otherwise entitle him to receive the pension herein provided, shall be deemed to have retired.

(d) This section shall apply to judges who were appointed prior to July 1, 1998 and to judges who have retired and are receiving benefits under this section. Judicial retirement for justices and judges appointed to the bench on or after July 1, 1998 is provided pursuant to W.S. 9-3-701 through 9-3-713.

(e) Any judge who is otherwise eligible to receive a pension may receive the benefits accorded by this section if he retires on the day of attainment of the age of seventy (70) years, or prior thereto, provided that if he is a judge on the effective date of this act, he may complete the present term for which he was elected or appointed without the loss of any pension benefits accorded by this section.

(f) Any justice of the supreme court or district court judge of this state, who has retired pursuant to the provisions of this section, and who is not practicing law, may, notwithstanding his retirement, be called upon, with his consent, at the request of a district court judge, with the consent of the chief justice, or by the chief justice, and assigned to service on any court. A retired justice or judge shall receive as a salary during any period of assignment an amount equal to the current compensation of a judge of the court to which he is assigned. The salary received by a retired justice or judge during any period of assignment shall not affect the receipt of any retirement allowance received by the retired justice or judge during the period of assignment. Assignments of retired justices or judges under this section shall only be made in a manner that does not jeopardize the qualified status of state retirement plans established by the Wyoming legislature. When called to serve, a retired judge or justice shall receive the same per diem and travel allowances as allowed active judges or justices. Per diem, allowances and compensation shall be paid from the contingent fund of the court to which the judge or justice is assigned.

(g) In lieu of the service retirement allowances provided in subsection (b) of this section, any judge specified in subsection (a) of this section may elect one (1) of the following forms of retirement benefits which shall be the actuarial equivalent of the allowance to which he would otherwise be entitled as determined by the actuary for the state retirement system:

(i) A full joint and survivor benefit which provides reduced monthly service retirement benefit payments during the retired member's life and upon his death after retirement continues payments in the same reduced amount to a designated beneficiary during the life of that beneficiary;

(ii) A half joint and survivor benefit which provides reduced monthly service retirement benefit payments during the retired member's life and upon his death after retirement continues payments, in the amount of one-half (1/2) of such reduced amount, to the designated beneficiary during the life of that beneficiary.

(h) A judge who is eligible for retirement may elect one (1) of the retirement benefit forms in subsection (g) of this section during the time the judge is serving in office. Payment of the pension or survivor benefit shall commence upon the retirement of the judge or upon the death of the judge while serving in office, based on the years of service at retirement or death in office. If a survivor benefit was elected as provided in paragraph (g) of this section by a judge who is no longer in active service and dies before retirement, the survivor benefit shall commence upon the earliest date the judge would have been eligible to retire unless the designated beneficiary elects a later date.