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Ex Parte Communication By The Judiciary, Jay C. Carlisle

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

The recent establishment of an Individual Assignment System in New York has introduced what one commentator has referred to as new "rules of the game". Nonetheless, the old rules still apply with respect to ex parte communication by judges which is governed by Canon 3(A)( 4) of the Code of Judicial Conduct. Canon 3(A)(4), as adopted by the New York State Bar Association in 1973, prohibits a judge from initiating or considering ex parte communications concerning a pending or impending proceeding. This prohibition, which has been strictly construed by decisional law and bar association advisory opinions, has new significance under …