Northern Ireland Judicial Pension Scheme
As part of changes to judicial pension arrangements, a new governance framework has been established over judicial pension schemes to ensure confidence in the scheme of both scheme members and taxpayers.
Privacy Notice
Pension Scheme and Advisory Board
The Northern Ireland Judicial Pension Scheme (NIJPS) was established by the Department of Justice on 1 April 2015 under the Judicial Pensions Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015 (the scheme regulations). It is a career-average revalued earnings scheme open to specified members of the devolved judiciary (that is, judicial office-holders in Northern Ireland who are not listed in paragraph 11 of Schedule 2 to the Northern Ireland Act 1998).
Specified members of the excepted judiciary (those office-holders who are listed) are eligible to join the equivalent Judicial Pension Scheme, which was established by the Lord Chancellor. Judicial office-holders (both devolved and excepted) with transitional protection may remain part of the predecessor to these schemes (known as JuPRA), for which the Lord Chancellor is also responsible. For further information about these schemes, contact the Ministry of Justice.
Scheme guide
The NIJPS closed to future accruals from 1 April 2022. From this date all scheme members moved to the Judicial Pension Scheme (JPS) 2022. The Lord Chancellor is the Scheme Manager for JPS 2022 and the Ministry of Justice is responsible for managing and administering the scheme on their behalf.
The features of the NIJPS are set out in the scheme guide , which also includes contact details for queries.
Governance
The governance of the NIJPS has three elements: the scheme manager, the pension board and the scheme advisory board.
The Department of Justice is the scheme manager of the NIJPS and as such is responsible for managing and administering the scheme. The day-to-date administration of the scheme is contracted out to Punter Southall Ltd by the Ministry of Justice as part of a contract for administering all UK judicial pension schemes. Queries about the scheme should be directed to XPS Group at mojadmin@xpsplc.com
Northern Ireland Judicial Pension Board
The Northern Ireland Judicial Pension Board is responsible for assisting the Department of Justice as scheme manager of the NIJPS:
- to secure compliance with the scheme regulations, any other legislation relating to the governance and administration of the NIJPS, and any requirements imposed by the Pensions Regulator in relation to the NIJPS
- in the performance of the scheme manager’s functions under the scheme regulations.
The Board is also charged with making recommendations to the scheme manager as part of Stage 2 of the NIJPS internal dispute resolution procedure, and in relation to the exercise by the scheme manager of certain discretions under the scheme regulations.
Terms of reference
Membership
The Board consists of an independent chair appointed by the Department of Justice and equal numbers of employer representatives and member representatives appointed by the chair with the approval respectively of the Department of Justice and the Lady Chief Justice of Northern Ireland.
| Name | Role | Employment and job title (where relevant) | How appointed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russell Agius | Independent chair | Appointed by the scheme manager | |
| Elaine Topping | Employer representative | Chief Operating Officer, Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service | Appointed by the chair with the approval of the scheme manager |
| Maxine Orr | Member representative | President of the Industrial Tribunals and Fair Employment Tribunal | |
Members interests
Meetings, agendas and minutes
The Board meets on a quarterly basis. Northern Ireland Pension Board meetings listed below:
| Meeting | Date | Agenda and minutes |
|---|---|---|
| 1st meeting | 24 March 2015 | March 2015 |
| 2nd meeting | 5 May 2015 | May 2015 |
| 3rd meeting | 16 July 2015 | July 2015 |
| 4th meeting | 22 October 2015 | October 2015 |
| Meeting | Date | Agenda and minutes |
|---|---|---|
| 5th 6th 7th and 8th meeting | 28 January, April and July 2016 | |
| 9th,10th, 11th and 12th meeting | February 2017, April and August, October 2017 | |
| 13th, 14th and 15th | January 2018, April 2018, October 2018 | |
| 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20, 21st | January 2019, February 2019, March 2019, August 2019,September 2019,December 2019, December 2019 | |
| 22nd, 23rd, 24th and 25th | March 2020, June 2020, September 2020, December 2020 | |
| 26th | March 2021 | |
| 27th, 28th | 22, Febuary 22, March 22 |
|
| 15th | March 2023 |
|
| 16th | April 2024 |
|
March 2025 |
|
Northern Ireland Judicial Pension Scheme Advisory Board
The Northern Ireland Judicial Pension Scheme Advisory Board is to provide advice to the Department of Justice on the desirability of any changes to the NIJPS.
Membership
| Name | Role | Employment and job title (where relevant) | How appointed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russell Agius | Independent chair | Appointed by the Department of Justice | |
| Elaine Topping | Employer representative | Chief Operating Officer, Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service | Appointed by the chair with the approval of the scheme manager |
| Maxine Orr | Member representative | President of the Industrial Tribunals and Fair Employment Tribunal |
Advisory Board members' interests
Board meetings, agenda and minutes 2015
| Meeting | Date | Agenda and minutes |
|---|---|---|
| 1st meeting | 24 March 2015 | March 2015 |
| 2nd meeting | 05 May 2015 | May 2015 |
| 3rd meeting | 16 July 2015 | July 2015 |
| 4th meeting | 22 Oct 2015 | October 2015 |
Board meetings, agenda and minutes
| Date | Agenda and minutes |
| 2019 | |
| 2020 | |
| 2021 | |
| 2023 |
What we are doing
- Consultation on proposed amendment to the Judicial Pension Regulations NI 2015
- Judicial Pension Scheme Information Notices
- HMRC annual allowance limit
- Communication to members
- Annual reports and accounts
- Consultation on new Northern Ireland judicial pension scheme
- Judicial pensions regulations NI 2015 transitional and consequential amendments
- Review of forfeiture provisions in the judicial judiciary in Northern Ireland
- Consultation on amendments to the Northern Ireland judicial pension scheme