Texas Judge’s Retirement Timing Nets Him a $30,000 Pay Boost

Texas’ highest-paid judge is timing his retirement to benefit from the first pay bump state judges have seen in more than a decade.

Justice Jeff Boyd will step down from the Texas Supreme Court on Sept. 1, a court spokesperson confirmed, the same day judges are due a raise that will up their base salaries by 25%.

By remaining employed for a day under the higher pay scale, he qualifies for roughly $30,000 additional retirement pay per year.

“I’m glad Justice Boyd will get a retirement pay raise. He has earned it, in my opinion,” said Paul Green, a former high court justice who served alongside Boyd.

The move is one of many consequences of the state’s long drought on judicial pay raises, which had left Texas’ compensation as one of the lowest in the country. Chief Justice Jimmy Blacklock made the push for a raise a cornerstone of his state of the judiciary speech to lawmakers, highlighting the gap between the majority of Texas lawyers and the state’s judges. Many have said that low pay hindered the recruitment of qualified candidates.

Here, Boyd’s wait to access the raise will force a scramble for his successor to fundraise ahead of the March primary, and get up to speed before oral arguments start on Sept. 9.

Boyd in a statement said he chose the date based on advice from the state employee’s retirement system, and that he discussed it with his court colleagues and Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) office, all of whom he said approved and agreed.

“By leaving at the end of the summer, I will complete my commitment for the court’s current term, including the court’s annual petitions conference in late August, and still leave time for the Governor to put someone in place before the new term’s first set of oral arguments in September, should he choose to do so,” Boyd said.

Judicial Pay

Boyd was appointed to the state’s high court in 2012 by then-Gov. Rick Perry (R), after serving as Perry’s chief of staff and general counsel.

Although he got tiered raises after four and eight years of service, and longevity pay after 12, he and other state judges last received an increase to their base salary in 2013.

Frantic negotiations at the close of the Legislative session last month revived a proposal that appeared to be dead just hours before a make-or-break deadline. It upped the base salary for district court judges from $140,000 to $175,000, triggering commensurate increases for higher court judges.

Boyd’s current pay of $211,680 is the highest in the state, matched by a few others. Had he stuck around, he would’ve been due a raise of nearly $53,000.

Historically, Texas justices have accepted lower pay than their market value to serve on the state supreme court, drawn in part to six-figure retirement pensions. Many transition to esteemed firms after retiring from the court, pulling a second paycheck.

Boyd hasn’t announced his retirement plans.

September Crunch

In April, Boyd announced he would retire rather than run again, broadly setting his departure for the summer near the end of the court’s term.

The justices delivered their final batch of opinions in June and then scaled back. They aren’t scheduled to meet again until Aug. 27, days before his Labor Day departure.

His mid-term retirement allows Abbott to name a successor, an unspoken tradition that gives Abbott’s pick an edge as the incumbent in the next election.

But the timing means Boyd’s successor will forfeit the opportunity to fundraise during the summer months, then have about 90 days to collect voter signatures ahead of a December filing deadline for the March primary.

Meanwhile, three other Supreme Court justices running to keep their seats began fundraising this spring.

Abbott didn’t respond to questions about his plans to replace Boyd.

However, former justice Green, a partner at Alexander Dubose & Jefferson, said he’s confident the timing won’t be a hurdle for either Abbott or Boyd’s replacement.

“The governor has had plenty of time to vet a replacement, and, in my experience with these events, the court and new justice will easily transition,” he said.