Conservative justice Amy Coney Barrett indicated Monday she would be in favor of the adoption of a code of conduct by Supreme Court justices. Supreme Court in the wake of recent allegations that justices have fallen short of the ethical standards required by law.
At The University of Minnesota Law School, Barrett said it would be “a good idea for us do it” and said that justices would be agreeing with the same set of rules to the ones lower court judges must adhere to.
“There is no lack of consensus among the justices. There’s unanimity among all nine justices that we should and do hold ourselves to the highest ethical standards possible,” she said.
Barrett who didn’t discuss ethics during a public forum in August, stated that the justices already abide by established guidelines, including the obligation that federal judges file annual financial disclosure reports.
She refused to discuss the reason why the court hasn’t yet adopted a new code despite the pressure of lawmakers in Congress along with ethics professionals.
“That’s something I can’t really speak for the court about or make any sort of guess about,” Barrett said.
The court has come under scrutiny for ethics violations in the wake of an ProPublica article in April described Justice Clarence Thomas’ acceptance of a number of trips by Harlan Crow, a Republican donor, which he has not reported in his annual financial disclosures. Thomas was able to defend his actions, claiming that the donations from Crow are “personal hospitality,” meaning that he was not required to declare them in accordance with rules of disclosure for judges that were in place at the time. The regulations have been amended.
A few Members of Congress have endorsed legislation regarding the issue, but the court could decide to address the issue by adopting its ethics code of conduct.
Other justices have also expressed the support of the creation of a new ethics code. Liberal justice Elena Kagan said last month that it was an “good thing,” and the conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh said earlier this month that he hoped that there would be “concrete steps soon.”
Chief Justice John Roberts said in May that justices are “continuing to look at things we can do” to demonstrate their commitment to most ethical standards.
The justices released a declaration in April, stating that they “reaffirm and restate” their dedication to ethical principles. The statement did not stop the criticism.