Opinion: The Supreme Court finally has a code of ethics, but it has a fatal flaw
1 year, 1 month ago

Opinion: The Supreme Court finally has a code of ethics, but it has a fatal flaw

LA Times  

Revelations about Justice Clarence Thomas have highlighted the need for justices to be recused when they have conflicts of interest. Although it is welcome and overdue that the Supreme Court finally adopted an ethics code for its justices on Monday, the approach is seriously flawed in that it includes no enforcement mechanism. Until Monday, every judge in the country — state and federal — was bound by an ethics code, except for the most important jurists: United States Supreme Court justices. With little fanfare, it released a “Code of Conduct for Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States,” signed by all nine justices. My colleague Jeremy Fogel, a former federal judge, proposed to the Senate Judiciary Committee in May that the chief justice appoint three retired federal court of appeals judges to decide recusal issues.

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History of this topic

Senate review of Supreme Court ethics finds more luxury trips and urges enforceable code of conduct
Trending News
3 days, 8 hours ago

Senate review of Supreme Court ethics finds more luxury trips and urges enforceable code of conduct

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — A nearly two-year investigation by Democratic senators of Supreme Court ethics details more luxury travel by Justice Clarence Thomas and urges Congress to establish a way to enforce a new code of conduct. The 93-page report released Saturday by the Democratic majority of the Senate Judiciary Committee found additional travel taken in 2021 by Thomas but not reported …

‘An ethical crisis of its own making’: Democrats blast Supreme Court ethics
3 days, 20 hours ago

‘An ethical crisis of its own making’: Democrats blast Supreme Court ethics

Al Jazeera  

In a new report, Democrats on the US Senate Judiciary Committee call out alleged ethical lapses among high court justices. A report from Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee has detailed new allegations about the “lavish gifts” justices on the United States Supreme Court received from donors. In their report, the Democrats slammed the Supreme Court’s chief justice, conservative John …

Senate review of Supreme Court ethics finds more luxury trips and urges enforceable code of conduct
3 days, 20 hours ago

Senate review of Supreme Court ethics finds more luxury trips and urges enforceable code of conduct

LA Times  

The Supreme Court adopted its first code of ethics in 2023, but it leaves compliance to each of the nine justices. A nearly two-year investigation by Democratic senators of Supreme Court ethics details more luxury travel by Justice Clarence Thomas and urges Congress to establish a way to enforce a new code of conduct. The 93-page report released Saturday by …

Senate Democrats render a verdict on Supreme Court ethics
3 days, 20 hours ago

Senate Democrats render a verdict on Supreme Court ethics

Politico  

Many of the trips, including one Thomas and his wife Ginni Thomas took by yacht and private jet in Indonesia in 2019 as a guest of billionaire developer Harlan Crow, were unearthed by ProPublica last year. “To date, the Judicial Conference has failed to adequately respond to the Supreme Court’s ethical crisis,” the report says. While the Senate report’s main …

The code of conduct judges need to follow
1 week, 6 days ago

The code of conduct judges need to follow

The Hindu  

The comments made by Allahabad High Court judge, Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav, against the Muslim community at an event organised by the legal cell of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in the High Court premises on December 8, has drawn public flak. Supreme Court Bar Association president, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, has reportedly called for the impeachment of the High Court …

SCOTUS ethics code debate split liberal and conservative justices amid ‘legitimacy crisis’
3 weeks ago

SCOTUS ethics code debate split liberal and conservative justices amid ‘legitimacy crisis’

Raw Story  

In 2005, President George W. Bush's nominee, John Roberts, became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. "Faced with ethics controversies and a plunge in public trust, they were debating rules for their own conduct, according to people familiar with the process," The Times adds, revealing that "behind the scenes, the court had divided over whether the justices’ new rules could …

Ketanji Brown Jackson Is 'Considering Supporting' An Enforceable Supreme Court Code Of Ethics
3 months, 3 weeks ago

Ketanji Brown Jackson Is 'Considering Supporting' An Enforceable Supreme Court Code Of Ethics

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson recently said she is leaning in favor of a binding code of ethics for the Supreme Court. “A binding code of ethics is pretty standard for judges, and so I guess the question is, ‘Is the Supreme Court any different?’” Jackson said in a “CBS News Sunday Morning” interview with “CBS …

Biden proposed enforceable ethics code and term limits for Supreme Court. How might they work?
4 months, 3 weeks ago

Biden proposed enforceable ethics code and term limits for Supreme Court. How might they work?

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Monday proposed major changes for the U.S. Supreme Court: an enforceable code of ethics, term limits for justices and a constitutional amendment that would limit the justices’ recent decision on presidential immunity. There are ideas about how to impose term limits without an amendment — but if such a law passed and were challenged …

‘Rules usually have enforcement mechanisms’: Supreme Court justice seeks ethics panel
4 months, 4 weeks ago

‘Rules usually have enforcement mechanisms’: Supreme Court justice seeks ethics panel

Raw Story  

Justice Elena Kagan wants to see the Supreme Court appoint an ethics enforcement committee following controversies surrounding conflicts posed by lavish trips bankrolled for Justice Clarence Thomas. During a Thursday conference, Kagan suggested to Chief Justice John Roberts that the court appoint “some sort of committee of highly respected judges with a great deal of experience and a reputation for …

Justice Kagan says there needs to be a way to enforce the US Supreme Court’s new ethics code
4 months, 4 weeks ago

Justice Kagan says there needs to be a way to enforce the US Supreme Court’s new ethics code

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Justice Elena Kagan on Thursday became the first member of the U.S. Supreme Court to call publicly for beefing up its new ethics code by adding a way to enforce it. In her first public remarks since the nation’s highest court wrapped up its term earlier this month, Kagan said she wouldn’t have signed onto the new …

“Compromised beyond measure”: Experts urge Senate to pass SCOTUS ethics code amid Alito flag debacle
7 months ago

“Compromised beyond measure”: Experts urge Senate to pass SCOTUS ethics code amid Alito flag debacle

Salon  

A prominent legal expert says Senate passage of Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s bill to require the Supreme Court to adopt a stronger ethics code could send a powerful message – even if its passage through the current House of Representatives is a likely impossibility. And, you know, if Justice Alito doesn't want Congress to impose an enforcement mechanism, he and Justice …

Editorial: Supreme Court’s new ethics code falls short in solving its ethics problem
1 year, 1 month ago

Editorial: Supreme Court’s new ethics code falls short in solving its ethics problem

LA Times  

The U.S. Supreme Court justices have adopted a code of conduct designed to assure Americans that they will behave ethically. Now, after embarrassing news reports about questionable conduct by some justices, it finally has brought forth a document designed to dispel “the misunderstanding that the justices of this court, unlike all other jurists in this country, regard themselves as unrestricted …

Supreme Court cowards are hiding behind a hollow ethics code. Here’s how to fix that.
1 year, 1 month ago

Supreme Court cowards are hiding behind a hollow ethics code. Here’s how to fix that.

Raw Story  

Justice Samuel Alito claims Congress has no power to impose an ethics code on the Supreme Court. Justices Alito and Thomas don’t just “regard themselves as unrestricted” by ethics, they have so egregiously violated the rules of fair play they shouldn’t be allowed to serve. Thomas luxuriates in a conservative donor’s uber-wealth Gifts lavished on Thomas and his crusading wife, …

The Supreme Court has adopted a conduct code, but who will enforce it?
1 year, 1 month ago

The Supreme Court has adopted a conduct code, but who will enforce it?

Raw Story  

This article originally appeared in ProPublica, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. The new Supreme Court code’s lack of any apparent enforcement process is “the elephant in the room,” said Stephen Vladeck, a law professor at the University of Texas who studies the court. “The Supreme Court’s promulgation of a code of conduct today is of surpassing historic significance,” former federal …

US Supreme Court announces new code of ethics for justices
1 year, 1 month ago

US Supreme Court announces new code of ethics for justices

Al Jazeera  

The code, which appears to lack an enforcement mechanism, was adopted after media reports detailed ethics questions surrounding some Supreme Court members. The Supreme Court of the United States has announced its first formal code of ethics governing the conduct of its nine justices, following months of outside pressure over revelations of undisclosed luxury trips and gifts from wealthy benefactors. …

Opinion: The Supreme Court code of conduct misses this big thing
1 year, 1 month ago

Opinion: The Supreme Court code of conduct misses this big thing

CNN  

Editor’s note: Stephen I. Vladeck is the Charles Alan Wright chair in federal courts at the University of Texas School of Law, a CNN contributor and an expert on the role of the federal courts in the war on terrorism. Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson once wrote that “if put to the choice, one might well prefer to live under …

The Supreme Court says it is adopting a code of ethics, but it has no means of enforcement
1 year, 1 month ago

The Supreme Court says it is adopting a code of ethics, but it has no means of enforcement

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday adopted its first code of ethics, in the face of sustained criticism over undisclosed trips and gifts from wealthy benefactors to some justices, but the code lacks a means of enforcement. “To dispel this misunderstanding, we are issuing this Code, which largely represents a codification of principles that we have long regarded as …

The Supreme Court is now adopting a code of ethics for justices
1 year, 1 month ago

The Supreme Court is now adopting a code of ethics for justices

NPR  

The Supreme Court is now adopting a code of ethics for justices The U.S. Supreme Court is adopting a code of ethics for its justices — a first — amid mounting criticism of gifts and trips from wealthy benefactors to certain justices. ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: For the first time, the U.S. Supreme Court is adopting a code of ethics for …

Justice Barrett expresses support for a formal US Supreme Court ethics code in Minnesota speech
1 year, 2 months ago

Justice Barrett expresses support for a formal US Supreme Court ethics code in Minnesota speech

Associated Press  

MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett said Monday that it would be a good idea for the nation’s highest court to adopt a formal code of conduct, but she said the nine justices already agree that they should hold themselves to the highest ethical standards possible. “I will say this, there is no lack of consensus among …

Justice Kagan supports ethics code but says Supreme Court divided on how to proceed
1 year, 4 months ago

Justice Kagan supports ethics code but says Supreme Court divided on how to proceed

Associated Press  

PORTLAND, Ore. — Justice Elena Kagan publicly declared her support for an ethics code for the U.S. Supreme Court but said there was no consensus among the justices on how to proceed, suggesting the high court is grappling with public concerns over its ethics practices. Her comments put her at odds with her fellow court member Justice Samuel Alito, who …

Justice Alito says Congress lacks the power to impose an ethics code on the Supreme Court
1 year, 4 months ago

Justice Alito says Congress lacks the power to impose an ethics code on the Supreme Court

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — Justice Samuel Alito says Congress lacks the power to impose a code of ethics on the Supreme Court, making him the first member of the court to take a public stand against proposals in Congress to toughen ethics rules for justices in response to increased scrutiny of their activities beyond the bench. Democrats last week pushed Supreme Court …

Alito: Congress can't impose ethics code on Supreme Court
1 year, 4 months ago

Alito: Congress can't impose ethics code on Supreme Court

LA Times  

Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. is the only Supreme Court member to publicly address proposals in Congress on ethics rules. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. says Congress lacks the power to impose a code of ethics on the Supreme Court, making him the first member of the court to take a public stand against proposals in Congress to toughen ethics …

Senators call for Supreme Court to follow ethics code like other branches of government
1 year, 5 months ago

Senators call for Supreme Court to follow ethics code like other branches of government

Associated Press  

The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, responding to Associated Press investigative stories on the Supreme Court, said Tuesday it was time for the justices to bring their conduct in line with the ethical standards of other branches of government. The nation’s highest court operates without an ethics code, instead following what Chief Justice John Roberts has referred to as …

How Do We Impose Ethical Standards On A Supreme Court That Has None?
1 year, 7 months ago

How Do We Impose Ethical Standards On A Supreme Court That Has None?

Huff Post  

The phrase is Latin in origin, used to admit that one has made a mistake or done something wrong, particularly if it could have been prevented. I wish those caustic words weren’t true, but when I look at this court, and when I look at the entirety of our government, ethics, the simple and common-sense principle of “just do the …

Will the Supreme Court have to answer to ethics rules? Lawmakers ask ‘how low can the court go?’
1 year, 7 months ago

Will the Supreme Court have to answer to ethics rules? Lawmakers ask ‘how low can the court go?’

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Republican lawmakers – who have supported a years-long …

Editorial: The Supreme Court needs ethics reform. That shouldn’t be a partisan issue
1 year, 7 months ago

Editorial: The Supreme Court needs ethics reform. That shouldn’t be a partisan issue

LA Times  

Thanks to recent reports about financial and personal dealings by members of the Supreme Court — including lavish trips bestowed upon Justice Clarence Thomas by a friend and prominent Republican donor — the public has become aware of a troubling fact: Unlike other federal judges, justices aren’t bound by the Code of Conduct for United States Judges. Fortunately, there is …

Column: The Supreme Court rejects ethics oversight. Can anything change that?
1 year, 7 months ago

Column: The Supreme Court rejects ethics oversight. Can anything change that?

LA Times  

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas: Even if he’s found to have breached ethics rules, what can anyone do about it? “That reality is driving a crisis in public confidence in the Supreme Court.” The debate about imposing an explicit code of conduct on the Supreme Court has foundered on a constitutional shoal — specifically, whether Congress could promulgate a code …

US lawmakers hold hearing on Supreme Court ethics concerns
1 year, 7 months ago

US lawmakers hold hearing on Supreme Court ethics concerns

Al Jazeera  

The hearing comes in the wake of several reports detailing the failure by justices to report possible conflicts of interest. US Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, a Democrat, said he had called the hearing on Tuesday because the Supreme Court has for years “refused” to “step up and fix this themselves”. Zhou-Castro said that, unlike other federal judges, “the …

Supreme Court on ethics issues: Not broken, no fix needed
1 year, 7 months ago

Supreme Court on ethics issues: Not broken, no fix needed

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court is speaking with one voice in response to recent criticism of the justices’ ethical practices: No need to fix what isn’t broken. Charles Geyh, an Indiana University law professor and legal ethics expert, said everything the justices detailed Tuesday evening about ethics was essentially outlined in Chief Justice John Roberts’ annual year-end report from 2011, …

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas: What could Congress do to hold him accountable?
1 year, 8 months ago

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas: What could Congress do to hold him accountable?

Slate  

After two ProPublica investigations revealed that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas may have been quietly violating federal disclosure law for over 20 years, the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts urging him to investigate the matter quickly—or they would have to “consider legislation to resolve it.” For decades, Thomas has been accepting luxury vacations, including …

Outside groups take a first stab at a Supreme Court ethics code
1 year, 9 months ago

Outside groups take a first stab at a Supreme Court ethics code

NPR  

Outside groups take a first stab at a Supreme Court ethics code Enlarge this image Jemal Countess/Getty Images for People's Rally Jemal Countess/Getty Images for People's Rally Finally, somebody has taken a try at writing a Supreme Court ethics code, though not the court itself. In particular, for instance, the model code would require justices to disqualify themselves from cases …

Supreme Court under fresh pressure to adopt code of ethics
1 year, 10 months ago

Supreme Court under fresh pressure to adopt code of ethics

CNN  

Washington CNN — For decades, Supreme Court justices have dodged questions related to conflicts of interest by saying essentially “Trust us” or “We’re different.” They’ve refused to be bound by an official ethics code and grievance procedures that cover other federal judges. More than that, this absence potentially imperils the legitimacy of all American courts and the American judicial system, …

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