California Court of Appeal

In consolidated cases regarding employee retirement plans, maintained under the County Employees Retirement Law (CERL), issue arose whether items of remuneration paid to employees qualify as "compensation." The trial court correctly ruled that CERL did not mandate that various items of remuneration that did not involve cash payments to employees had to be included in the calculations of "final compensation" for retirement benefits.

Appellate Information

• Decided 07/11/2003
• Published 07/11/2003

Judges

• LAMBDEN, J.

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
•  Silver, Hadden & Silver, Stephen H. Silver, Santa Monica, for Plaintiffs and Appellants (plan members).,  Davis, Cowell & Bowe, Philip Paul Bowe, W. David Holsberry, San Francisco, for Plaintiff and Appellant Los Angeles County Professional Peace Officers' Association et al (LACERA members)., Steefel, Levitt & Weiss, Harvey L. Leiderman, Ashley K. Dunning, San Francisco, for Board of Retirement of the Orange County Employees' Retirement System as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants (plan members)., Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue, Elwood Lui, Scott D. Bertzyk, Eugenia Castruccio Salamon, Los Angeles, for Real Parties in Interest and Appellants (Counties)., Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue, Elwood Lui, Scott D. Bertzyk, Eugenia Castruccio Salamon;  Lloyd W. Pellman, County Counsel (Los Angeles), Raymond G. Fortner, Deputy County Counsel, Roger M. Whitby, Deputy County County, for Real Party in Interest and Appellant County of Los Angeles.


• For Appellees:
  
• Thomas F. Casey III, County Counsel (San Mateo), Brenda B. Carlson, Deputy County Counsel, for Defendants and Appellants (Retirement Boards)., Morrison & Foerster, Michael V. Toumanoff, Los Angeles, for Defendant and Respondent Board of Retirement of the Los Angeles County Employees' Retirement System (LACERA Board).