The Committee on Judicial Ethics responds to written inquiries from New York state’s approximately 3,400 judges, who serve both full- and part-time. The committee’s opinions interpret the Rules Governing Judicial Conduct (22NYCRR, Part 100) and the Code of Judicial Conduct. The committee, comprised of 26 current and retired judges and headed by former Justice George D. Marlow, also answers inquiries about proper campaign conduct from candidates for elective judicial office. The New York Law Journal publishes selected recent opinions of the committee.
Digest: A judge asks whether he/she may participate in a not-for-profit organization’s training academy planning group. The academy has been providing training to mental health providers and now seeks to expand its audience to teach lawyers (defense, prosecutors, probation department, court). The goal is to educate lawyers on all sides of a criminal case about mental illness and the mental health system. The judge has indicated that the planning group includes prosecutors, defense attorneys, and attorneys from Mental Hygiene Legal Services and certain not-for-profit medical centers, in addition to judicial member(s).
