Superior Court Rules Against Former School Committee Member

A former member of the Marblehead School Committee will not be able to "buy back" 12 years of his retirement after a Superior Court judge ruled against him Tuesday morning. 

Edward Rockett, 71, a retired associate justice of the Probate and Family Court has been appealing a judgment from a decision of the Contributory Retirement Appeal Board.

The CRAB decision earlier this month denied Rockett's request to "buy back" for retirement purposes, 12 years of his pre-judicial public service, nine of which he spent as an assistant register of probate and three of which he spent as an elected, uncompensated member of the Marblehead School Committee. 

According to court documents, Rockett contends, the elected official provision of the retirement law applies to his service as a member of the Marblehead School Committee.

"When his School Committee service is tacked to his years of service as an assistant register, he has sufficient service for a SERS pension," court documents submitted by Rockett's lawyer Kevin Murphy said. "Second, he claims that CRAB and the Superior Court judge erred in concluding that he was not entitled to buy back his SERS service and realize the pension for which his years of service qualify him. Neither contention is persuasive."

On Tuesday, the original judgement made against Rockett stating he could not buy back his 12-years of service, was upheld.

Rockett first asked the State Retirement Board to give him a state pension in 2004.

Rockett earned nine years toward the 10 needed to collect a state pension while assistant register of probate for Essex County. He withdrew his money in 1982, according to state records. In 2004, he sought to return that money and buy three more years of service for work as an unpaid member of the Marblehead School Committee.

Rockett's attorney did not immediately return calls seeking comment.