California (CA) Judiciary CLE Course Catalog

Can you believe there have been judges who searched a party’s home and seized property, had sex in chambers with former interns and lawyers, jailed a woman for a year for unpaid parking tickets, went on vacation with the prosecutor after a guilty verdict and took bribes to render not guilty verdicts? In these cases, the truth is stranger than fiction and Peter Afrasiabi reviews these unbelievable cases while discussing how these judges flagrantly violated the canons of judicial ethics that govern the conduct of federal and state court judges in the United States. Rules covered include: Code of Conduct for United States Judges, Canons 1, 2A, 3 & 4; Federal Ethics in Government Act, 28 U.S.C. Section 455.

You’ve probably heard of the Supreme Court’s “shadow docket,” but do you know how it can be used to affect the Court’s rulings? In the next installment of this popular series, Peter Afrasiabi reviews the origins and current usage of the “shadow docket,” including some proposed reforms to the practice. Peter also discusses the broader topic of transparency at the Court in light of the unprecedented leak of a draft opinion, the use of live audio feeds of oral arguments during COVID and other recent developments.