ABA COMMISSION SEEKS COMMENT ON DRAFT REVISIONS
OF PORTIONS OF THE MODEL CODE OF JUDICIAL CONDUCT

CHICAGO, May 13, 2004--The American Bar Association Joint Commission to Evaluate the Model Code of Judicial Conduct today released for comment preliminary drafts of revised Canons 1 and 2 of the ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct.

Commission Chair Mark I. Harrison of Phoenix encouraged public comment on the drafts and highlighted a few specific areas for comment, including provisions related to the appearance of impropriety and rules on judicial disqualification. The preliminary drafts do not represent formal recommendations for revisions to ABA policy, but rather are a step in the development of such recommendations.

The current model code contains a preamble and a definitions section, followed by five canons governing judicial conduct. Each canon contains provisions to provide guidance for judges and standards for judicial disciplinary enforcement. The drafts of revised Canons 1 and 2 recognize and modify many of the provisions in the first three canons of the current model code. They are posted on the ABA Website at http://www.abanet.org/judicialethics/drafts.html. The current model code is posted at www.abanet.org/cpr/mcjc/mcjc_home.html. Comments should be directed to commission counsel Eileen Gallagher by July 15 at gallaghe@staff.abanet.org or at the ABA Justice Center, 321 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL 60610.

The commission has held a series of public hearings soliciting thoughts on possible code revisions. Two additional hearings are scheduled: June 4 in Naples, Fla., during the ABA National Conference on Professional Responsibility, and Aug. 6 in Atlanta, during the 2004 ABA Annual Meeting. Groups or individuals wishing to comment more generally on the model code also should send their comments to Gallagher.

Among issues on which the commission specifically invites comment are:

• Retaining the appearance of impropriety as an enforceable standard;
• Retaining comment that urges judges to disclose to parties or their lawyers information relevant to disqualification, even when the judge believes there is no basis for disqualification;
• Permitting judges to "debrief" jurors after a trial;
• Prohibiting judges from presiding over trials after they have participated with the parties in settlement negotiations;
• Permitting judges to seek information or opinions of disinterested experts outside the presence of litigants and their lawyers, or by such means as accessing the Internet or consulting other judges;
• Determining whether judges involved in problem-solving courts have unique ethical issues that should be addressed in the code; and
• Providing judicial immunity from civil suit for action taken in response to misconduct by other judges or by lawyers.

ABA President Dennis W. Archer drew on the ABA Standing Committee on Judicial Independence and Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility to form the joint commission last September, noting it had been 12 years since the code had undergone a complete review. The commission is to recommend revisions for consideration by the ABA House of Delegates in August 2005. The work of the commission is funded by a grant from the Joyce Foundation.

The American Bar Association is the largest voluntary professional membership association in the world. With more than 400,000 members, the ABA provides law school accreditation, continuing legal education, information about the law, programs to assist lawyers and judges in their work, and initiatives to improve the legal system for the public.