Proposed rule would 'ban' federal judges from membership in top conservative legal group

[WestVirginiaRebel]

The Blaze

A draft rule of the federal judicial branch's ethics body could potentially curb judges' ability to be members of one of the country's top conservative legal organization.

 

According to a story published Friday at RealClear Politics:

The ethical advisory arm of the federal judiciary is circulating a draft rule that would ban judges and their clerks from belonging to the Federalist Society, an organization aimed at fostering an originalist interpretation of the Constitution at law schools and through forums and debates across the country.

The proposed rules change is the latest salvo in a campaign to cast the Federalist Society as too political, and thereby politically risky, for judiciary participation. The Wall Street Journal editorial board labeled the proposal "judicial political mischief masked in high sounding rhetoric," a step that is spurring a backlash among "judges and others" who should denounce it as "undermining legal education in America and perhaps violating the First Amendment right of association."

The draft — which was put together by the Committee on Codes of Conduct of the U.S. Judicial Conference — warns that judges' "formal affiliation" with the organization "is inconsistent" with portions of the codes of conduct for federal judges. It explains that such affiliation "could convey to a reasonable person that the affiliated judge endorses the views and particular ideological perspectives advocated by the organization; call into question the affiliated judge's impartiality on subjects as to which the organization has taken a position; and generally frustrate the public's trust in the integrity and independence of the judiciary." It also says that relevant portions of the codes of conduct would "lead to similar conclusions on issues regarding outside activities, particularly for law clerks and staff attorneys."

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Lawyers don't like the Constitution.