California Supreme Court Watch

#24-71 Ventura County Employees’ Retirement Assn. v. Criminal Justice Attorneys Assn. of Ventura County, S283978. (B325277; 98 Cal.App.5th 1119; Santa Barbara County Superior Court; VENCI00546574.) Petition for review after the Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment in a civil action. This case presents the following issue: For purposes of calculating retirement benefits for members of County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 (Gov. Code, § 31450 et seq.) retirement systems, does Government Code section 31461, subdivision (b)(2) exclude payments for accrued, but unused hours of annual leave that would exceed the maximum amount of leave that was earnable and payable in a calendar year?

Petition for review granted: 4/17/2024

Case fully briefed: 10/04/2024

Cause argued and submitted: 5/06/2026

Opinion filed: Judgment affirmed in full: 7/27/2026

See the Court of Appeal Opinion.

See the Oral Argument.

See the California Supreme Court Opinion.  (Ventura County Employees’ Retirement Assn. v. Criminal Justice Attorneys Assn. of Ventura County (2026) __ Cal.5th __.)

“Reading the relevant statutory text in light of the purposes it was meant to achieve, we now confirm what we said about section 31461(b)(2) in Alameda County [Deputy Sheriff’s Assn. v. Alameda County Employees’ Retirement Assn.(2020) 9 Cal.5th 1032]: Under PEPRA, a public employee’s retirement benefit calculation may not include cashed out leave time in excess of the applicable annual limit set by the terms of employment, even though the employee has designated a final compensation period that straddles two or more calendar years.

…

We affirm the judgment of the Court of Appeal.”

Justice Kruger authored the opinion of the Court, in which Justices Corrigan, Liu, Groban, Evans, and Boulware Eurie* concurred.

Chief Justice Guerrero filed a concurring opinion.