- Subject to several conditions, a judge may meet with private vendors to procure or investigate services or products for use by the court or parties pursuant to court order but may not meet with vendors about developing or promoting their services. California Formal Opinion 2017-9.
- When giving a speech at a court-sponsored Law Day event, a judge should focus on the law and not on comments by the President that she believes are critical of the role of an independent judiciary. New York Opinion 2017-54.
- To determine whether to unsubscribe from e-mails about political issues she receives on her personal e-mail account, a judicial official should consider whether the sending organization is concerned with the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice; whether the organization is a “political organization;” the extent to which the judicial official’s identity would be revealed to other recipients; and whether the e-mails concern a matter pending or impending in any court. Connecticut Informal Opinion 2017-8.
- A judge may not meet with attorneys who represent criminal defendants for a “defense perspective” on the court’s handling of discovery, diversion, and disposition of cases. New York Opinion 17-101.
- When a judge’s alleged misstatement of the law is the basis for an appeal but the judge does not recall her exact words, the judge may not advise the parties that she believes she correctly stated the legal standard and that the transcript is erroneous. New York Opinion 2017-61.
- A judge may not appoint her sibling as a master commissioner. Kentucky Opinion JE-128 (2017).
- A judge may not appoint her brother as a special prosecutor or guardian ad litem even when the appointment is governed by a rotating list. Nebraska Opinion 2017-2.
- A judicial nominee may provide a letter to clients stating that, as a result of her appointment to the bench, she will no longer be representing them, but that her law firm will continue the representation. Connecticut Informal Opinion 2017-2.
- A new judicial officer must advise his former law firm that his name needs to be removed from the firm name as soon as reasonably possible. Connecticut Informal Opinion 2017-5.
- A judge may not solicit funds for a non-profit drug treatment center or allow court employees to do so. Ohio Opinion 2017-6.
- A judicial association may accept $200 worth of appetizers from a restaurant for a cultural celebration open to the public. New York Opinion 2017-80.
- A group of judges may not accept free tickets to sit in the governor’s box at Baltimore Orioles games. Maryland Opinion Request 2017-12.
- A judge may be a housing resource for a relative on parole, but should not seek an exception to the parole board’s standard procedures based on his judicial status. New York Opinion 2017-77.
- A judge may appear in a family photograph on her first-degree relative’s campaign literature provided she does not wear a judicial robe and is not identified as a judge. New York Opinion 2017-79.
- A judicial official may not belong to the Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyers’ Association. Connecticut Informal Opinion 2017-7.
Judicial ethics and discipline 