Plaintiffs, a retired and current trial court judge, filed appeals with the Judges Retirement System of Illinois Board of Trustees, objecting to their classification as Tier 2 members and seeking to be reclassified as Tier 1 members based on their participation in other Illinois pension systems prior to the effective date of the tiered system. The board rejected the plaintiffs’ arguments and denied their request for reclassification and the circuit court upheld the board’s decision on administrative review. The appellate court affirmed, finding that under the language of the Public Act and the rules of statutory construction, the statute clearly and unambiguously limited Tier 1 status to individuals who had served as judges prior to the effective date and did not, as plaintiffs argued, expand membership to individuals who received a pension for a non-judicial position prior to the effective date. (ANDERSON and BERTANI, concurring)
Illinois Appellate Court
Civil Court
State Pensions