Tightening Supreme Court Ethics Rules Faces Steep Hurdles
The drumbeat of revelations that Justice Clarence Thomas did not disclose lavish gifts and significant financial arrangements with a billionaire Republican donor has put a spotlight on the fact that the Supreme Court has the weakest ethics rules in the federal government.
But it is far less clear that anything can be done about it.
Justice Thomas’s behavior has underscored that financial disclosure rules for justices are porous and that the court has no binding code of ethical conduct like the one that governs lower-court judges. The court has shown no interest in adopting one, and proposals in Congress to force one upon it face steep political and constitutional hurdles.
As a result, even as Supreme Court ethics have become a matter of public policy concern to a degree not seen since 1969 — when Justice Abe Fortas resigned in a scandal over taking outside income from a friend and a Wall Street financier — Washington finds itself grappling with growing questions about the court’s accountability and all but paralyzed over how to proceed.
“It’s a mess,” said Stephen Gillers, a legal ethics professor at New York University. “It’s like a maze you have to get out of, but each time you make a turn, you come up against a wall and you have to double back and see if you can find another route out.”
Source: The New York Times
