New York judges will be booted from the bench at age 76, the state’s highest court ruled Thursday rejected the notion that it constitutes age discrimination.
The Court of Appeals shot down a bid by three elderly jurists challenging an 1869 law that sets the mandatory retirement age at 76, saying it violates their rights under the state’s Equal Rights Amendment.
Judges are forced to “retire” at age 70 but can stay on the bench for another six years by getting recertified every two years.
New York’s constitution originally required judges to retire at 60 when it was enacted in 1777.
The septuagenarian judges who fought against the age cap argued they are “arbitrarily” forced to stop working based solely on their age.
One of the plaintiffs, retired state appellate judge David Saxe, argued in part that there aren’t age restrictions on governors or members of the legislature.
He blasted Thursday’s decision as “an unnecessarily narrow and unimaginative decision.”
Chief Judge Rowan Wilson and Judge Madeline Singas “took no part” in the decision.