Law Commons^™

The Regulation Of Judicial Ethics In The Federal System: A Peek Behind Closed Doors, Arthur D. Hellman

Articles

Ethical issues involving federal judges have been much in the news recently. Among other developments, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing to consider impeaching a federal district judge; the Judicial Conference of the United States announced two major policy initiatives; and a committee chaired by Justice Stephen Breyer issued an in-depth report on the operation of the judicial misconduct statutes.

This article addresses two aspects of federal judicial ethics. The first involves conflict of interest and disqualification. Under the law, a federal judge is disqualified from hearing a case if (among other circumstances) the judge's impartiality "might reasonably be …

Conflict Of Interest, Robert H. Aronson

Articles

The purpose of this article is to indicate situations in which conflict of interest problems most commonly arise and to suggest principles for avoiding such situations or resolving unavoidable conflicts. Part One presents an overview of the subject, with a discussion of general principles underlying conflict of interest problems. Part Two applies these general' principles to a number of frequently encountered problem areas. Throughout the discussion, the author approaches problem situations with a cautious eye. Not every court or grievance committee would impose discipline or invalidate a transaction for all the conflicts scrutinized herein; nevertheless, the possibility of such measures …