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Mandatory retirement is the compulsory retirement of judges who have reached a specific age determined by a state's constitution. Thirty-one states and theDistrict of Columbia have set mandatory retirement ages as of March 2022. In 2003, Vermont established the highest mandatory retirement age at 90 years old.^[1]

Federal courts

Federal judges have no mandatory retirement date. They are appointed for life by thepresident of the United States with confirmation by theUnited States Senate.^[2]

State courts

Mandatory retirement ages by state

Map

List of states

Efforts to change mandatory retirement ages

Court challenges

In 2013, judges in Pennsylvania challenged the constitutionality of the state'smandatory retirement age, claiming it was discriminatory under the equal protection and due process clauses of theFourteenth Amendment. That challenge was dismissed, first by JudgeJohn E. Jones, III of theMiddle District of Pennsylvania, then by a three-judge panel of theThird Circuit. Both dismissals found that the arguments presented during the challenge to the law were unconvincing.^[49][50]

A 2018 challenge to the constitutionality of Michigan's mandatory retirement age claimed that it violated the equal protection clause, with JudgeMichael Theile alleging that recent changes in life expectancy and among society had made the rule unnecessary. The case would be dismissed by a three-judge panel of theSixth Circuit. The decision cited precedent, finding that society had not changed significantly enough in the intervening time to justify overturning it.^[51][52]

Passed initiatives

• ThePennsylvania Judicial Retirement Age Amendment (2016) raised the mandatory retirement age for justices and judges from 70 to 75.

The ballot included the following language:

"Shall the Pennsylvania Constitution be amended to require that justices of theSupreme Court, judges, and magisterial district judges be retired on the last day of the calendar year in which they attain the age of 75 years?"

• TheTexas Proposition 14: The constitutional language created by this proposition allows a justice or judge to serve the remainder of their term despite reaching the mandatory age for retirement.^[53]

The ballot included the following language:

"The constitutional amendment permitting a justice or judge who reaches the mandatory retirement age while in office to serve the remainder of the justice's or judge's current term."^[54]

• TheVermont Retirement Age for Judges Amendment: The wording on the ballot was, "Permits the General Assembly to prescribe by law the mandatory retirement age for justices of the Supreme Court and judges of all subordinate courts, not to be less than seventy years of age."

• TheWisconsin Retirement Age for Judges Amendment: This amendment was part of four questions on the April 1977 ballot that sought to reform the Wisconsin court system. Question 5 specifically modifiedArticle VII, Section 24 of the Wisconsin constitution to all the legislature to sets a mandatory retirement age for judges and justices to any age 70 or above.^[55]

The ballot included the following language:

"Mandatory retirement age. Shall section 24 of article VII of the constitution be amended, to authorize the legislature to set the age not less than 70 at which a justice or judge must retire?"^[55]

• TheWashington Judge Retirements Amendment: The section added to the constitution by Amendment 25 says:

"A judge of the supreme court or the superior court shall retire from judicial office at the end of the calendar year in which he attains the age of seventy-five years. The legislature may, from time to time, fix a lesser age for mandatory retirement, not earlier than the end of the calendar year in which any such judge attains the age of seventy years, as the legislature deems proper. This provision shall not affect the term to which any such judge shall have been elected or appointed prior to, or at the time of, approval and ratification of this provision. Notwithstanding the limitations of this section, the legislature may by general law authorize or require the retirement of judges for physical or mental disability, or any cause rendering judges incapable of performing their judicial duties."

Failed initiatives

• Wyoming Constitutional Amendment B, Judicial Retirement Age Measure (2022) was alegislatively referred constitutional amendment that appeared on theNovember 8, 2022, ballot in Wyoming. It would have raised the mandatory retirement age from 70 to 75. It was defeated by 61 percent of voters opposing the measure.

• TheOregon Elimination of Mandatory Judicial Retirement Age, Measure 94 (2016) was alegislatively referred constitutional amendment that appeared on theNovember 8, 2016 ballot in Oregon. It was defeated by Oregon voters with 36.95 percent of the vote.

• Louisiana voters decided to keep the state'smandatory retirement age for judges in 2014. Louisiana judges must retire when the term during which they turn 70 expires. TheLouisiana Mandatory Judicial Retirement Age Amendment sought to do away with that constitutional requirement. The measure was strongly supported in both chambers of the Louisiana legislature.^[56]

• Hawaii voters defeated an effort to increase themandatory retirement age for all Hawaii judges to 80 from the current age of 70 in 2014. TheHawaii Mandatory Retirement Age for Justices and Judges, SB 886 (2014) received almost unanimous support in theHawaii House of Representatives andHawaii Senate, and had the support of GovernorNeil Abercrombie.^[57]

• TheNew York Mandatory Judicial Retirement Age Amendment, Proposal 6 (2013) was defeated by New York voters in the 2013 election by a vote of 58 percent to 42 percent. The measure would have raised the mandatory retirement age from 70 to 80 for all judges.^[58]

• TheOhio Judicial Office Age Amendment appeared on theNovember 2011 general election ballot in the state ofOhio as alegislatively referred constitutional amendment, where it wasdefeated. The measure would have raised the age of those occupying judicial office from 70 to 76. The measure was debated during the2011 state legislative session. The measure was sent to the ballot before the end of that year's session.^[59]

• TheLouisiana Increase Mandatory Age of Retirement for Judges from 70 to 75, Amendment was on theOctober 1995 ballot inLouisiana. It was alegislatively referred constitutional amendment and wasdefeated with 37.69 percent of the vote.

See also

• Length of terms of state supreme court justices
• Judicial selection in the states
• How vacancies are filled in state supreme courts

Footnotes