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Slaughter, Murphy, Blumenthal and Whitehouse Introduce Supreme Court Ethics Bill

POSTED BY: NIKI2
UPDATED: Sunday, August 4, 2013 03:40
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Saturday, August 3, 2013 8:30 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...


Gawd knows if it has a snowball's chance in hell of going anywhere, but it's long overdue:
Quote:

Today, U.S. Congresswoman Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.) and U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) announced the Supreme Court Ethics Act of 2013, which will require the United States Supreme Court to adopt a code of ethics for Supreme Court Justices. Unlike every other federal judge, Supreme Court justices are exempt from the Code of Conduct for United States Judges—a binding code of ethics that ensures neutrality and transparency in our courts. The Supreme Court Ethics Act of 2013 would require the Court to adopt a code of ethics within 180 days of passage.

A string of dubious ethical behavior has increased scrutiny of the Supreme Court and eroded public confidence in the institution, with Gallup reporting that Americans' approval of the Court stands at just 43 percent – almost an all-time low – while 47 percent disapprove. These concerns include justices allowing their names to be used to promote political fundraisers, attending seminars sponsored by high-profile political donors, failing to report family income from politically active groups, and failing to recuse themselves when deciding cases where there exists a conflict of interest. New reporting from last week indicates that questions regarding conflicts of interest are likely to continue. Furthermore, the Court's pattern of siding with powerful corporate interests more often than preceding courts has drawn additional scrutiny.

In 2012, 212 legal scholars jointly urged the Court to adopt the Code of Conduct for U.S. Judges. Over 125,000 Americans have signed a petition to Chief Justice John Roberts asking him to adopt a code of ethics for the high court.

"We are a nation defined by the rule of law, and our government is defined by our comprehensive system of checks and balances. Recent reports of dubious ethical behavior by Supreme Court justices have undermined these two fundamental principles, and have eroded the American people's faith in the Supreme Court as an institution. In order to restore the people's trust, the Supreme Court needs to adopt a Code of Conduct –just as every other federal judge is required by law. As the highest court in the land and the ultimate arbiter of justice in America, the integrity of our justices should be beyond reproach, and this law will ensure that we hold true to the standards on which this country was founded," said Rep. Slaughter, who championed similar legislation last Congress and whose record of holding government accountable includes the landmark "America For Sale" report on government corruption from 2000-2006 and passing the STOCK Act in 2012, which banned insider trading by members of Congress.

"The American people deserve to know that our highest court is held to the highest ethical standard, and this bill aims to make the court more accountable and transparent," said Senator Murphy. "As Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis once said, 'sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants'. It's time that we apply that same ideal to the Supreme Court, and this bill will help guarantee the integrity of our country's highest court."

"This legislation's goal is to preserve public trust and confidence – the lifeblood of the Supreme Court – after claims of questionable conduct by some Justices," Senator Blumenthal said. "No Justice, any more than a judge, should advance a partisan cause or sit on a case involving a personal friend or interest. There is no persuasive reason in law or logic why Supreme Court Justices should not be held to the same high standard as other federal judges."

"This legislation would finally establish guidelines for the conduct of our nation's highest court," said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. "Every other federal judge in America is already subject to a code of conduct, and our Supreme Court justices should be too. I thank Senator Murphy and Congresswoman Slaughter for introducing this commonsense measure."

"Every single federal judge in America is subject to a code of conduct—with the glaring exception of the nine justices of the United States Supreme Court," said Nan Aaron, President of Alliance for Justice. "Supreme Court justices should be able to resist the temptation to lend the prestige of their office to partisan political causes, or fraternize with and fundraise on behalf of those who could have a financial stake in Court decisions. Unfortunately, some of the justices sitting on the Supreme Court today have been unable to resist that temptation. That's why we need a code of conduct for the Supreme Court—and why we wholeheartedly support this legislation."

"The Supreme Court Ethics Act of 2013 will restore the public's faith in the Court by ensuring that the Court adheres to the same high ethical standards that apply to the rest of the judicial branch," said Amanda Frost, Professor of Law at American University's Washington College of Law. "Every state supreme court has adopted a code of ethics, and every other federal judge in the country is bound by one as well. The Supreme Court of the United States should be no exception." http://news.silobreaker.com/slaughter-murphy-blumenthal-and-whitehouse
-introduce-supreme-court-ethics-bill-5_2267004353321631819
]


Unlike all other federal judges, Supreme Court justices are not responsible for following the Code of Conduct for United States judges. Instead, they are given broad latitude and authority to recuse themselves from cases if they feel that is the right thing to do. Unfortunately, in the cases of Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, they have failed to do so, and have faced heat from concerned citizens multiple times for alleged conflicts of interest.

Both judges have attended events hosted by right-wing groups and corporations and then proceeded to judge on cases where the verdict directly benefitted persons who they ideologically identify with and to whom they have known connections. Even were they judging to the best of their ability, with no special interests in mind, they would still ethically need to recuse themselves from the cases in order to prevent motive-based questions from even being asked. That is not what has happened. Instead, Scalia and Thomas have attended fundraisers sponsored and ran by the Koch brothers, and gone on to judge on cases that had a financial impact for the funders of American conservatism.

The New York Times has reported on the Koch meetings, which basically feature a list of individuals that the Kochs believe can help them with their eventual goal — the privatization of most government services and bargaining rights stripped from the American worker:
Quote:

The Kochs insist on strict confidentiality surrounding the California meetings, which are entitled “Understanding and Addressing Threats to American Free Enterprise and Prosperity.” The letter advises participants that it is closed to the public, including the news media, and admonishes them not to post updates or information about the meeting on the Web, blogs, social media or traditional media, and to “be mindful of the security and confidentiality of your meeting notes and materials.” [ ...]

To encourage new participants, Mr. Koch offers to waive the $1,500 registration fee. And he notes that previous guests have included Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas of the Supreme Court, Gov. Haley Barbour and Gov. Bobby Jindal, Senators Jim DeMint and Tom Coburn, and Representatives Mike Pence, Tom Price and Paul D. Ryan. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/20/us/politics/20koch.html?_r=2&ref
=politics&pagewanted=all&
]


Legal authorities, legal ethics experts and law professors have been trying to get some action on this for several years now. From 2011:
Quote:

More than 100 law professors have signed on to a letter released today that proposes congressional hearings and legislation aimed at fashioning "mandatory and enforceable" ethics rules for Supreme Court justices for the first time.

The effort was triggered by "recent media reports," the letter said, apparently referring to stories of meetings and other potential conflicts of interest involving Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas among others.

The professors note that the Court is not covered by the code of conduct that lower federal court judges are required to follow. The Supreme Court has long said it looks to the code for "guidance" -- a concession which, the signers agree, "has proved insufficient." The letter also points out disapprovingly that individual justices alone decide whether they should or should not recuse in a given case, not subject to review by anyone else, and with no requirement to explain their decisions.

In making their case, the professors invoked the Court's own language from the 2009 decision in Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Co., which disapproved of a state judge's refusal to step aside from a case that involved a major campaign donor. "Judicial integrity is," the Court said, "a state interest of the highest order."

Among the signers are leading names and experts on legal and judicial ethics, including Stanford Law School's Deborah Rhode, George Washington University Law School's Stephen Saltzburg and Alan Morrison, James Alfini of South Texas College of Law, Yale Law School's Lawrence Fox, Amanda Frost and Herman Schwartz of American University Washington College of Law, Northwestern University School of Law's Steven Lubet and Ellen Yaroshefsky of Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. More at http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2011/02/law-profs-urge-ethics-rules-
for-supreme-court-justices.html


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Saturday, August 3, 2013 9:11 AM

NEWOLDBROWNCOAT


2 questions, not just for you, Niki :

On a Constitutional level, does Congress have the authority to pass legislation about the Supreme Court? Doesn't that push the edges of separation of powers or the system of checks and balances?

The 4 sponsors of the bill are all Democrats. Is this a partisan attack, or does it just seem like it could be one? Does the measure have any bi-partisan support?

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Saturday, August 3, 2013 9:22 AM

GEEZER

Keep the Shiny side up


Can't find a text of the legislation.

So who would be responsible for acting against judges accused of violating the code of ethics? The Congress? Lots of Separation of Powers issues if Congress can in effect fire Supreme Court Justices. Judicial panels? If so, who names them? Then again, I can see that filing harrassment claims against the Supremes, so thay'd have to spend lots of their time in defending themselves from spurious claims, would be an intresting tactic.

Once again, looks like folks trying to change laws and systems that have been developed over long years of trial and error to support the entire legal system, just so they can have things temporarily turn out their way.

But hey. How about having the Congress itself sign on to a code of ethics as strict as they want to apply to the Supremes. Any Democratic legislators trying to do that?


"When your heart breaks, you choose what to fill the cracks with. Love or hate. But hate won't ever heal. Only love can do that."

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Saturday, August 3, 2013 1:31 PM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...


I cannot answer your questions, NewOld, as I'm not that well educated in the matter. But my question would be, should not the Supreme Court be answerable to SOMEBODY? It appears that currently they are not, which goes to the old saying of power corrupting and "absolute power".

As to it being Democrats, can you envision any Republican, in the current atmosphere, being willing to stand up to the Supreme Court? I cannot. I would question it as well if it weren't for the absolutely BLATANT actions of the two Supremes in question and how long it's gone on. To me, it has long seemed that they've realized that they are NOT answerable to anyone and can do exactly as they wish, and are willing to be quite flagrant about their bias.

This has been an ongoing issue for a long time now. If nobody takes action, at what point does it get so overt that something WOULD be done, and what is there in place TO do anything about it? Or is the Supreme Court answerable to nobody at all, and can behave like dictators when their majority chooses to?

It's obviously a very tricky thing, as the Supremes need to be protected, but for me it's gotten to the point where it needs to be addressed somehow. Otherwise, we have essentially lost our checks and balances, which are quite weak enough as it is in some respects.

ETA: " How about having the Congress itself sign on to a code of ethics as strict as they want to apply to the Supremes" I would love that.

And as to "laws and systems that have been developed over long years of trial and error to support the entire legal system"--what do you do when that system stops working? Just go on like nothing's changed? I don't recall a time in my life when Supremes did the sort of things they are doing now; they felt a responsibility to at least attempt to not publicly flaunt their bias.


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Saturday, August 3, 2013 3:36 PM

NEWOLDBROWNCOAT


I know Congress has the authority to impeach federal judges, that's in the Constitution. I seem to remember them impeaching A Supreme, long time ago.

Any of you good Tea Party Constitutional scholars got any input on that?

Supreme Court justices are supposed to be above political pressure-- they're supposed to be impartial. That's why they're appointed for life, so they don't have to be worried about being re-elected. That's why choosing them is supposed to be a big deal, so the smartest legal minds, and the most honest, honorable guys get chosen, not just guys who have party loyalty and who pass the current partisan litmus test.

Seems I remember when it was the righties crying about "liberal activist judges" and wanting to remove judges for being "too liberal."

Classic argument-- "that's why winning the federal and Presidential elections matters." They get to nominate the Supes, and the federal judges who'll be in office a VERY LONG TIME. The influence of the guy making those choices lasts LONG after his term of office is over.

E-T-A: from the original text of the Big C-- "The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments." Not Congress, sorry, my bad.

"The Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction... under such regulations as the Congress shall make." (Some snipped, but I think the main intent is still clear.) So the Constitution meant Congress to have some authority over the Supremes, and the make SOME regulations for them. How much, that's the real good question.

MORE. from Wikipedia: "Only one justice has been impeached by the House of Representatives (Samuel Chase, March 1804), but he was acquitted in the Senate (March 1805).[73] Moves to impeach sitting justices have occurred more recently (for example, William O. Douglas was the subject of hearings twice, once in 1953 and again in 1970), but they did not reach a vote in the House. "



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Sunday, August 4, 2013 3:40 AM

NIKI2

Gettin' old, but still a hippie at heart...


For me, the first step is to create a code of ethics, as they're suggesting, so that the Supremes are essentially "on notice" that they have a responsibility toward impartiality. I hate the idea of impeachment, it's already sufficiently bandied about and abused. Something clear (as clear as politicians can make it, anyway) and legal so they can know what to abide by.

For me, this move would be a way of saying "Look, we see what you're doing and it's wrong"--whether it would have any effect or not would be up to the judges individually, but I prefer small steps rather than giant leaps. JMHO.


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