RULES GOVERNING THE STANDING
COMMITTEE ON
JUDICIAL ETHICS
[As revised by the Nevada Supreme Court effective
June 29, 2011.]
1. Creation and purpose.
The Standing Committee on Judicial Ethics and
Election Practices is hereby created to provide judges and aspirants to
judicial office advisory opinions regarding ethical matters that may arise in
the ordinary course of judicial service, or in the elective or appointment
process.
2. Organization of the committee.
The committee shall consist of thirty members.
Twelve shall be attorneys, twelve shall be non-attorneys, and six shall be
judges designated to serve on the ethics advisory committee as provided in Rule
5.
The Board of Governors of the State Bar shall appoint the attorney members,
and the Governor may appoint the non-attorney members. If the Governor declines
to appoint, then the Board of Governors of the State Bar and the Nevada
Commission on Judicial Discipline shall each appoint six of the non-attorney
members. The supreme court shall appoint three district judges and three judges
serving either as municipal court judges or justices of the peace.
When appointing the non-attorney members, consideration shall be given to
each appointee's experience in the areas of advertising and public relations,
journalism, regulatory bodies, politics and political campaigns, and also to the
appointee's other qualifications and experience as will ensure that diverse
points of view are represented on the committee.
(a) Terms. Appointments or
reappointments are for a 2-year term of office. The initial membership shall
have staggered terms. No member shall be appointed to more than four
consecutive full terms.
(b) Removal. Committee members are not subject to removal by their
appointing authority during their terms of office, except for cause. Cause
includes unexcused failures to attend scheduled meetings, the number of which
the committee shall set in an attendance policy.
3. Officers of the committee.
There shall be a chair and vice-chair. The
Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline shall appoint the chair and vice-chair
from the attorney members of the committee for two-year terms.
4. Executive director of the committee.
The executive director of the Nevada
Commission on Judicial Discipline shall act as the executive director of the
committee.
The committee shall:
1. Render non-binding advisory opinions on
hypothetical questions regarding the Nevada Code of Judicial Conduct; and
2. Assist the supreme court by studying and
recommending additions to, amendments to, or repeal of provisions of the Nevada
Code of Judicial Conduct or other laws governing the conduct of judges and
judicial candidates.
Committee members shall not participate in any matter in which they have
either a material pecuniary interest that would be affected by a proposed
advisory opinion or committee recommendation, or any other conflict of interest
which prevents them from participating. However, no action of the committee will
be invalid where full disclosure of a potential conflict of interest has been
made and the committee has decided that the member's participation was not
improper.
The attorney members of the Standing Committee on Judicial Ethics and
Election Practices and six judges appointed by the supreme court shall function
as an ethics advisory committee. The committee has the authority to render
non-binding advisory opinions on hypothetical questions regarding the Nevada
Code of Judicial Conduct. The advisory opinions may also be issued by a panel of
the ethics advisory committee.
1. Opinions.
Any opinion issued by the committee expresses the judgment of
the committee and is advisory only. When it is determined that a request
warrants a written opinion, the opinion shall:
(a) Set forth hypothetical facts of the ethical question presented in a
general manner without identification of the requesting judge or judicial
candidate or any details of the request which would permit such identification;
(b) Identify the judicial canons relied upon
and include other authorities relevant to the disposition of the opinion;
(c) Include a discussion and conclusion;
(d) Be signed by the chair
or vice-chair of the committee; and
(e) Conclude with the
following statement:
"This opinion is issued by the Standing Committee on Judicial Ethics and
Election Practices. It is advisory only. It is not binding upon the courts, the
State Bar of Nevada, the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline, any person or
tribunal charged with regulatory responsibilities, any member of the Nevada
judiciary, or any person or entity which requested the opinion."
2. Panels.
The ethics advisory committee may be divided into panels of eight
members each. The chair or vice-chair, one district judge, and one municipal
judge or justice of the peace shall be members of each panel.
3. Filing and delivery.
The formal advisory opinion shall be furnished by
personal delivery or first-class mail to the address provided by the requesting
party. The
committee shall also file a copy of the opinion with the clerk of the supreme
court. All formal advisory opinions shall be numbered and maintained on file at
the committee's office, together with all materials considered by the committee
in adopting the opinion, and shall be available to any member of the bench or
bar upon request. A reasonable charge to defray the costs of reproduction of
such opinions and postage may be collected.
4. Limitations.
The committee shall not act on requests for opinions when any
of the following circumstances exist:
(a) There is a pending state bar or judicial discipline commission
complaint, investigation, proceeding, or litigation concerning the subject of
the request.
(b) The request constitutes a complaint against a member of the
judiciary.
(c) The request involves procedures employed by the judicial discipline
commission in processing complaints against judges.
(d) The request involves activities, the propriety of which depends
principally on a question of law unrelated to judicial ethics.
(e) Where it is known that the request involves a situation in litigation
or concerns threatened litigation or involves the propriety of sanctions within
the purview of the courts, such as contempt.
(f) The committee has by majority vote determined that it would be
inadvisable to respond to the request and has specified in writing its reasoning
to the person who requested the opinion.
5. Confidentiality.
Except for the opinions issued by the committee, all
meetings, deliberations, materials considered, and work product of the committee
shall be confidential.
The committee shall study and submit recommendations to the supreme court
regarding proposed changes to the Nevada Code of Judicial Conduct or other laws
governing the conduct of judges and judicial candidates.
The members of the committee and all staff persons assisting them shall have
absolute immunity from civil liability for all acts undertaken in the course of
their official duties pursuant to these rules.
