A judge shall uphold and promote the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary, and shall avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety. The agreement shall be incorporated into the record of the proceeding. (1) A judges public manifestation of approval of invidious discrimination on any basis gives rise to the appearance of impropriety and diminishes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary. However, when engaging in extrajudicial activities, a judge shall not: (E) make use of court . (2) A judge may provide a reference or recommendation for an individual based upon the judges personal knowledge. The Order provides, inter alia, for filing deadlines, electronic submission, and consequences for failure to file and falsification of information on the form. Activities of Judges Who Become Candidates for Nonjudicial Office. (B) A judge may encourage parties to a proceeding and their lawyers to settle matters in dispute but shall not act in a manner that coerces any party into settlement. Affiliation with Discriminatory Organizations. Fiduciary Activities. However, a judge shall not: (A) participate in activities that will interfere with the proper performance of the judges judicial duties; (B) participate in activities that will lead to frequent disqualification of the judge; (C) participate in activities that would reasonably appear to undermine the judges independence, integrity, or impartiality; (D) engage in conduct that would reasonably appear to be coercive; or. P.O. (3) Judges should uphold the dignity of judicial office at all times, avoiding both impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in their professional and personal lives. Judicial Conduct Board files charges against Harrisburg - PennLive Colby J. Miller - Deputy Counsel - Judicial Conduct Board - LinkedIn In addition, judges are permitted and encouraged to engage in educational, religious, charitable, fraternal or civic extrajudicial activities not conducted for profit, even when the activities do not involve the law. See Rule 2.11. 1.3. For the Public The Code provides that although such opinions are not per se binding on the Judicial Conduct Board, the Court of Judicial Discipline, or the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, action taken in reliance thereon shall be considered in determining whether discipline should be recommended or imposed. (3) The rule against making administrative appointments of lawyers who have contributed as a major donor to a judges campaign includes an exception for positions that are substantially uncompensated, such as those for which the lawyers compensation is limited to reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses. If, however, the judges impartiality might reasonably be questioned under paragraph (A), or the relative is known by the judge to have an interest in the law firm that could be substantially affected by the proceeding under paragraph (A)(2)(c), the judges disqualification is required. This Rule does not prohibit a judge from participating in arbitration, mediation, or settlement conferences performed as part of assigned judicial duties. The Board is composed of 12 Pennsylvania citizens, six appointed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and the other half appointed by the Governor, including three judges, three lawyers, and six non-lawyers. (1) Taking action to address known misconduct is a judges obligation. (2) The resign to run rule set forth in paragraph (A) is required by Article V, Section 18(d)(4) of the Pennsylvania Constitution, which states: A justice, judge or justice of the peace who files for nomination for or election to any public office other than a judicial office shall forfeit automatically his judicial office. It ensures that a judge cannot use the judicial office to promote his or her candidacy, and prevents post-campaign retaliation from the judge in the event the judge is defeated in the election. 207 Pa. Code Part III. Judicial Conduct Board Paragraph (C)(3) obligates candidates and their committees to refrain from making statements that are false or misleading, or that omit facts necessary to make the communication considered as a whole not materially misleading. 1. Judges may write, lecture, teach, and speak on non-legal subjects and engage in the arts, sports, and other social and recreational activities, if such avocational activities do not detract from the dignity of their office or interfere with the performance of their judicial duties. The judge should keep in mind the effect that the judges participation in settlement discussions may have, not only on the judges own views of the case, but also on the perceptions of the lawyers and the parties if the case remains with the judge after settlement efforts are unsuccessful. Supervisory Duties. Pennsylvania Judicial Conduct Board complaint regarding Justice J. Michael Eakin - Free download as PDF File (.pdf) or read online for free. Appointed Board members serve four-year terms without pay and meet regularly to review filed complaints against Pennsylvania judges. Compensation for Extrajudicial Activities. (2) A judge may obtain the written advice of a disinterested expert on the law applicable to a proceeding before the judge, if the judge gives advance notice to the parties of the person to be consulted and the subject matter of the advice to be solicited, and affords the parties a reasonable opportunity to object and respond to the notice and to the advice received. (3) The rule of necessity may override the rule of disqualification. Such contributions are governed by other Rules of this Code, including Rules 4.3 and 4.4. Member of the candidates familyThe spouse, domestic partner, child, grandchild, parent, grandparent, or other relative or person with whom the candidate maintains a close familial relationship. 3.13. The board also asked that . The Judicial Conduct Board files a complaint formally charging a judicial officer with misconduct. PDF PART III. JUDICIAL CONDUCT BOARD - Pennsylvania Code & Bulletin See Rule 4.1(A)(12). A judge may act pro se in a legal action in which he or she is personally involved, and may, without compensation, give legal advice to and draft or review documents for a member of the judges family, but is prohibited from serving as the family members lawyer in any forum. A judge shall conduct the judges personal and extrajudicial activities to minimize the risk of conflict with the obligations of judicial office. (8) Subject to paragraph (C)(4), a judicial candidate is permitted to respond directly to false, misleading, or unfair allegations made against him or her during a campaign, although it is preferable for someone else to respond if the allegations relate to a pending case. (B) When public reporting is required by paragraph (A), a judge shall report: (1) the date, place, and nature of the activity for which the judge received any compensation; (2) the date and description of any gift, loan, bequest, benefit, or other thing of value accepted; (3) the date and source of any reimbursement of expenses or waiver or partial waiver of fees or charges; and. (A) Avocational activities. ), in or be employed, directly or indirectly, by any licensed racing entity or licensed gaming entity, or any holding, affiliate, intermediary or subsidiary company thereof or any such applicant, or engage in the active ownership or participate in the management of any such entities and related companies. The candidate shall take reasonable steps to cause his or her campaign committee to comply with applicable provisions of this Code and other applicable law. A persons knowledge may be inferred from the circumstances. (4) The fact that a lawyer in a proceeding is affiliated with a law firm with which a relative of the judge is affiliated does not itself disqualify the judge. CONDUCT BOARD. (C) A judge who accepts reimbursement of expenses, waivers, partial waivers of fees or charges on behalf of the judge or the judges spouse, domestic partner, or guest shall publicly report such acceptance as required by Rule 3.15. 2.1. Actual improprieties include violations of law, court rules or provisions of this Code. (3) A judge shall not give investment advice to such an organization. (1) Judges shall be available to decide the matters that come before the court. All filings shall be filed with the Court of Judicial Discipline clerk of court in the Pennsylvania Judicial Center, 601 Commonwealth Avenue, Suite 5500, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Judges are expected to maintain their supervisory role over a deliberating jury. Impartial, impartiality, impartiallyAbsence of bias or prejudice in favor of, or against, particular parties or classes of parties, as well as maintenance of an open mind in considering issues that may come before a judge. 563 Judicial Administration Docket [52 Pa.B. Political and Campaign Activities of Judges and Judicial Candidates in General. Harrisburg, PA 17106-2525 A judge shall not serve as the executor, administrator, trustee, guardian, attorney in fact, or other personal representative or other fiduciary, except for the estate, trust, or person of a member of the judges family, and then only if such service will not interfere with the proper performance of judicial duties. (B) A judge shall not appoint a lawyer to a position if the judge either knows that the lawyer, or the lawyers spouse or domestic partner, has contributed as a major donor within the prior two years to the judges election campaign, or learns of such a contribution by means of a timely motion by a party or other person properly interested in the matter, unless: (1) the position is substantially uncompensated; (2) the lawyer has been selected in rotation from a list of qualified and available lawyers compiled without regard to their having made political contributions; or. Court Cases - Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania (A) A judge shall publicly report the amount or value of: (1) compensation received for extrajudicial activities as permitted by Rule 3.12; (2) gifts and other things of value as permitted by Rule 3.13(C), unless the value of such items, alone or in the aggregate with other items received from the same source in the same calendar year, does not exceed $250; and. A judge may not direct court personnel to engage in conduct on the judges behalf or as the judges representative when such conduct would violate the Code if undertaken by the judge. Education Lafayette College BA Government-Law/Art History Summa Cum Laude with Honors . Extrajudicial Activities in General. (B) A judge shall cooperate with other judges and court officials in the administration of court business. As an example, loans provided at generally prevailing interest rates are not gifts, but a judge could not accept a loan from a financial institution at below-market interest rates unless the same rate was offered to the general public for a certain period of time or only to borrowers with specified qualifications that the judge also possesses. (4) The Pennsylvania Code of Judicial Conduct denotes standards for the ethical behavior of judges and judicial candidates. There is no attempt, under the present rule, to require disqualification on account of individual contributions made to a PAC, so long as the organization does not serve as the alter-ego of a specific donor or donors. (4) the date and source of any gifts, loans, bequests, benefits, or other things of value received by the business, profession, or other separate activity of a spouse, a domestic partner, or other family member of a judge residing in the judges household if the source is a party or other person, including a lawyer, who has come or is likely to come before the judge, or whose interests have come or are likely to come before the judge.