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February 27, 2023

Supreme Court Justices Should Follow Binding Code of Ethics, ABA House Says

Resolution 400 urges all other bar associations to pass their own resolutions calling for the Supreme Court to adopt a code of judicial ethics.

Resolution 400 urges all other bar associations to pass their own resolutions calling for the Supreme Court to adopt a code of judicial ethics.

The U.S. Supreme Court should adopt a binding code of ethics for its justices that is akin to the code of conduct the Judicial Conference of the United States adopted for other federal judges, the House of Delegates said after a spirited debate at the 2023 ABA Midyear Meeting in New Orleans on February 6.

Resolution 400, which was submitted by the King County Bar Association in Seattle, also urges all other bar associations to pass their own resolutions calling for the Supreme Court to adopt a code of judicial ethics that is binding on its justices.

James Williams, the Washington state delegate to the House of Delegates, introduced the resolution, saying it could be “the most consequential that we will have a conversation about during this House.” He contended the American people need to know that the legal system—at its highest level—has some code that governs their conduct.

“How do we explain to them when they find out that every lawyer in this room, every judge in this room, every lawyer and every judge across the United States of America has a code of conduct, but the United States Supreme Court does not?” Williams said. “How do you explain to the American people when they discover that every part of our government structure, all the other agencies, have codes of conduct, but the United States Supreme Court does not?”

Williams also argued the resolution is vital to the legal profession and the Supreme Court itself.

“This resolution is about protecting the Supreme Court,” he said. “It is about bolstering the court’s reputation and its credibility with the American people and within this profession.”

While Supreme Court justices must adhere to some ethical requirements set by federal statute, they are not bound by any rules that include “the full sweep of basic ethical principles” that apply to other judges, the report accompanying the resolution says.

Members of the federal judiciary are covered by the Code of Conduct for United States Judges, which was originally based on the ABA’s Model Code of Judicial Conduct. Every state has adopted some version of the model code.

The ABA sent a letter to the Supreme Court transmitting the new ABA policy that urges the Court to adopt its own binding code of ethics on February 16.

To read the full article, visit abajournal.com.

See also:

ABAJournal.com: “Op-ed: Ethics code for Supreme Court would hold justices accountable in court of public opinion”

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