Chief Magistrate, DPP to get more pay

THE Salaries Review Commission (SRC) has recommended big increases in salary and allowances for persons employed in the Judicial and Legal Service. If the SRC’s 71st report is accepted, the increases will be effective from April 1, 2002, meaning a whopping back pay for judicial officers. The report of the SRC was laid in the House of Representatives yesterday by Attorney General John Jeremie. Heading the list for higher salaries are the Chief Magistrate, Master of the High Court, Solicitor General, Director of  Public Prosecutions, Chief Parliamentary Counsel, Chief State Solicitor, and the Controller of the Intellectual Property Office, who will receive a $20,000 per month salary.
         
The Chief Magistrate and Master of the High Court will also receive a professional allowance of $3,500, duty allowance of $1,500, a transportation allowance of $2,500, a service allowance of $2,500, and a housing allowance of $5,000. The Solicitor General, DPP, and Chief Parliamentary Counsel will receive a professional allowance of $5,000 a month, with the Chief State Solicitor and the Controller of the Intellectual Property Office receiving $3,500. They will also receive a duty allowance between $1,500 and $2,000 monthly. The Deputy Chief Magistrate and the Registrar and Marshall of the Supreme Court will take home a monthly salary of $18,500 along with other perks. Magistrates will get $15,500 a month along with their allowances.

The deputy Solicitor General, Deputy DPP, Registrar General, Director of the Law Commission and several others will now get a salary of $17,000 a month along with allowances. A State Counsel 1 will start up with the minimum salary ranging between $7,200 and $7,500. Salaries and allowances increase with the higher ranks. The SRC report dated May 18, was signed by its members — Edward Collier, chairman, Keith Ortiz, Joyce Marshall, Ashton Brereton, and Varun Maharaj. The SRC members noted that the representatives of the magistrates asked that the magistracy be delinked from the Judicial and Legal Service and placed within the higher judiciary.