With the public hearings of the 2006 Alberta Judicial Compensation Commission taking place, the issue of how much Albertans should pay our judges is a hot topic.

While the flames of judicial compensation might have been recently fanned, the fun game of trying to decide how much to pay a provincial judge has been going on for many years. In fact, it came to a head in 1994 when the Alberta government attempted to roll-back judges' wages by five per cent to match a wage cut accepted by MLAs and other public servants.

It eventually ended up before the Supreme Court of Canada.

In 1997, the Supreme Court ruled that each province had to appoint a Judicial Compensation Commission every three years to eliminate the constant court battles.

The 1998 Judicial Compensation Commission in Alberta ruled that judges should be paid $142,000, up from the $113,964 they earned in 1997. The Alberta government "accepted" the report with some "modifications". Namely, that judges be paid $125,000 instead.

The judges and the Alberta government went to court again over the matter and it's not hard to guess how this one ended.

The 2000 Judicial Compensation Commission upped the salaries to $170,000, and the 2003 Commission upped the salaries to $220,000.

Currently, Alberta provincial court judges are tied with Ontario for the distinction of highest paid in the country. Since 1997, Alberta judges have received a 93 per cent hike in their pay.

Considering that the 1998 Commission recommended a 25 per cent increase, the 2000 commission gave them a 20 per cent increase, and the 2003 commission handed them a 29 per cent hike, it's tough to blame taxpayers for being a bit nervous about what to expect out of the 2006 Commission.

Ironically, whether generosity, guilt, or Stanley Cup fever, the Alberta Provincial Judges' Association recommended the 2006 Commission freeze their wages at $220,000 for the next three years!

Interestingly, the Alberta government also suggested a wage freeze in their submission to the Commission.

Ultimately, it is up to the Commission to make the final decision. But normally, when labour (the judges) and management (the Alberta government) both agree on a wage settlement, it should be a pretty easy job being the arbitrator.

Yet there's still reason for taxpayers to be nervous. Looking ahead, will the 2009 Judicial Compensation Commission recall that four years of frozen wages was in response to a 93 per cent increase in the previous nine years, or will they decide judges need to "catch-up"

Place your bets on the latter.

That is precisely why judicial wages should not be frozen. That's right, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation is advocating judicial wages, in fact, be increased.

If judicial wages were linked to the annual change in Average Weekly Earnings of Albertans, as calculated by Statistics Canada, there would be no need for the Commission. No need for the Commission to recommend outrageous increases in 2009 and no need for our Alberta government to spend thousands our tax dollars fighting judges in court, in a battle they always lose.

Currently, MLAs and the city councils of both Edmonton and Calgary annually adjust their wages by the change the Average Weekly Earnings of Albertans to avoid these so-called "catch-up adjustments" (although Edmonton city council is going to be double dipping in 2007). It's fair, it's transparent, and if it's good enough for Albertans and our politicians, it should be good enough for our judges.

And as a bonus, it will likely end up costing taxpayers less in the end.