SCOTUS justices face calls for code of conduct: legal affairs reporter

09 February 2023

A new report is shedding light on the increased calls for code of conduct guidelines to be put in place for U.S. Supreme Court justices, which would hold them to the same professional standards as judges in lower courts.

"Every time allegations are made about ethical lapses on the Supreme Court, the same question is asked: Why, unlike federal judges in lower courts, do the nine justices not have a binding code of conduct?" MSNBC's Lawrence Hurley wrote.

According to Hurley, those calls increased drastically due to the controversy involving Virginia "Ginni" Thomas, the wife of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Thomas is facing scrutiny for her involvement in former President Donald Trump's attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

"Until now, the justices have held firm, even though district court and appeals court judges are bound by a judicial ethics code," he wrote. "Among other things, it requires judges to 'avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all activities.' If judges breach the code, they can be investigated and reprimanded via a separate complaint process."

The growing calls for a code of conduct come as Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) prepares to reintroduce a legislative proposal. In a recent statement, Murphy expounded on the issue as he called for "increase transparency" and more forms of accountability.

"It’s a simple, nonpartisan solution to increase transparency, enforce accountability, and start to rebuild public confidence in the court," Murphy said in a statement.

While justices have argued there are certain codes in place, Hurley pointed out the issues with that writing, "The justices say they follow the spirit of the code, introduced in 1973, but they have never formally adopted one of their own. There is also no procedure that allows for complaints to be investigated short of the drastic step of impeachment."

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