16Pension of Solicitor‑General

#### 16 Pension of Solicitor‑General (1AA) This section does not apply in relation to a person appointed as Solicitor‑General after 31 December 1997. (1) Subject to this section, the provisions of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968 other than subsection 4(2) (including the provisions relating to spouses and children) apply to and in relation to a person who is or has been a Solicitor‑General as though the Solicitor‑General were or had been a Judge and as though his or her service (whether in continuous periods or not) as Solicitor‑General were service as a Judge. (2) If a person becomes a Judge and, at any time before his or her appointment as a Judge, he or she held office as Solicitor‑General, the period of his or her service as Solicitor‑General shall, for the purposes of sections 6 and 7 of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968, be added to, and be deemed to be part of, his or her period of service as a Judge and: (a) if, at the time of so becoming a Judge, he or she is in receipt of a pension by virtue of subsection (1)—that pension ceases to be payable; or (b) if, at that time, he or she is not so in receipt of a pension—no pension becomes payable by virtue of that subsection by reason of his or her having held office as Solicitor‑General. (3) If a person is appointed as Solicitor‑General and, at the time of his or her appointment, he or she is in receipt of a pension under the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968 by virtue of subsection (1), that pension ceases to be payable. (4) Where: (a) a person has at any time, whether before or after the commencement of this subsection, served in the office of Solicitor‑General for a period of at least 7 years, whether continuous or not; and (b) the person ceases to hold that office after that commencement, otherwise than under paragraph 10(b); and (c) the person is not entitled to payment of a pension under subsection (1); subsections (5) to (9), inclusive, apply in relation to the person. (4A) If a person is appointed as Solicitor‑General and, at the time of the appointment, is receiving a pension because of the application of subsection (8), that pension ceases to be payable. (5) For the purpose of the application of subsections (6), (7) and (8) in relation to the person, a reference to the relevant discounted rate of pension is a reference to whichever is the lesser of: (a) 0.5% of the appropriate current salary for each completed month of the person’s actual service as Solicitor‑General; or (b) 60% of the appropriate current salary; reduced by 2.5% for each whole year between: (c) in the case of the application of subsection (6)—the date on which the person actually ceased to hold office as Solicitor‑General and the date that the Attorney‑General certified under that subsection was the date on which the person became permanently disabled or permanently infirm; (d) in the case of the application of subsection (7)—the date on which the person actually ceased to hold office as Solicitor‑General and the date on which the person died; or (e) in the case of the application of subsection (8)—the date on which the person actually ceased to hold office as Solicitor‑General and the date on which the person attained the age of 60 years. (6) If the Attorney‑General certifies that the person became, at a particular date before attaining the age of 60 years, permanently disabled or permanently infirm, the relevant provisions of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968 apply in relation to the person as if the person had held office as Solicitor‑General at that date and the certificate were given under subsection 6(2) of that Act, but the rate of the pension payable to the person is the relevant discounted rate of pension. (7) If the person dies before attaining the age of 60 years and was not entitled to a pension under subsection (6) immediately before his or her death, the relevant provisions of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968 apply in relation to the person as if the person had held office as Solicitor‑General at the time of his or her death, but a reference in any of those provisions as so applying to the relevant pension is a reference to pension at a rate equal to the relevant discounted rate of pension. (8) If the person attains the age of 60 years and was not entitled to a pension under subsection (6) immediately before attaining that age, the relevant provisions of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968 apply in relation to the person as if the person’s period of appointment as Solicitor‑General had expired upon his or her attaining that age after having served for not less than 10 years, but the rate of the pension payable to the person is the relevant discounted rate of pension. (9) The person may, at any time before attaining the age of 60 years, apply to the Attorney‑General for a certificate under subsection (6) and, upon receipt of the application, the Attorney‑General shall: (a) if satisfied that the person became, at a particular time before attaining the age of 60 years, permanently disabled or permanently infirm—so certify under subsection (6); or (b) otherwise—refuse to certify under that subsection. (10) In the application of the relevant provisions of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968 by virtue of this section, a reference in section 6 of that Act to a Judge retiring includes a reference to a Solicitor‑General not being re‑appointed. (11) An application may be made to the Administrative Review Tribunal for review of a refusal of the Attorney‑General, on application under subsection (9), to give a certificate under subsection (6). (11A) For the purposes of this section, the appropriate current salary in relation to a person at a particular time (the calculation time) is calculated as follows:  For the purposes of the calculation: > Judge’s 1997 salary means salary at the rate that was payable on 31 December 1997 to a Judge (other than the Chief Justice) of the Federal Court of Australia. > Judge’s salary at the calculation time means salary at the rate that is payable at the calculation time to a Judge (other than the Chief Justice) of the Federal Court of Australia. > Solicitor‑General’s 1997 salary means salary at the rate that was payable on 31 December 1997 to the Solicitor‑General. (12) In this section: > Judge means a Judge within the meaning of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968. > relevant provisions of the Judges’ Pensions Act 1968 means the provisions of that Act referred to in subsection (1). (13) Pensions under or by virtue of this section are payable out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, which is appropriated accordingly.