Skip to content

Andrew L. Kaufman, Judicial Ethics - The Less-Often Asked Questions, 64 Wash. L. Rev. 851 (1989).


Abstract: Judicial ethics is a topic of increasing interest to the public, the bar, and the judiciary; only recently has the body of substantive law regarding judicial behavior begun to take shape. This essay explores the less developed issues of exparte communication by judges, activities of judges' spouses, the obligation of judges to report attorney disciplinary violations, and extrajudicial comments by judges about legal matters. The Author analyzes the positions on these issues of the ABA Code of Judicial Conduct, the Judicial Conference of the United States' Code of Conduct for United States Judges, and the Discussion Draft of Draft Revisions to the ABA Code of Judicial Conduct, and offers his own view of the appropriate standards for each.