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Sen. Elizabeth Warren in a hearing at the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, DC. September 28, 2021. Kevin Dietsch/Pool via REUTERS/
Two Democratic lawmakers on Thursday asked U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts for information on failures by judges to recuse themselves from cases in which they had financial conflicts as they questioned whether he had done enough to enforce ethics rules.
Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington cited as a reason for their concerns a Wall Street Journal report that 131 judges failed to recuse themselves from cases involving companies in which they or their family members owned stock.
The lawmakers in a letter to Roberts, in his role as the presiding officer of the U.S. Judicial Conference, the judiciary's policymaking body, said the "stunning" report "will justifiably reduce public confidence in the justice system."
They cited other instances in which Supreme Court justices similarly did not recuse themselves from cases despite potential financial conflicts as further evidence of a "systemic failure that requires accountability."
"These extensive ethics breaches are, at least in part, a direct result of the inadequate processes for judicial accountability," the lawmakers said in the letter.
Roberts could not be immediately reached for comment.
The letter came a day after the director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts in a memo said she was directing staff to evaluate ways to improve its conflict screening process following the report.
Democrats on the U.S. House of Representatives' Judiciary Committee have previously announced they would hold hearings to investigate issues identified by the newspaper and re-introduce legislation that would reform judicial financial disclosures.
In Thursday's letter, Warren and Jayapal noted financial disclosure reports currently are not publicly available online and argued parties are disincentivized from requesting copies because judges are notified about such requests.
Warren and Jayapal argued for legislation they back requiring public release of disclosure reports and barring judges from owning individual stocks.
But they also called on the judiciary to take steps on its own, saying a "a decisive response from the judiciary is urgent and necessary."
They asked Roberts to provide information on why the 131 judges failed to disqualify themselves; whether the judiciary was aware of other judges who had similarly not recused themselves; and what actions the judiciary was taking in response to the report.
They also asked whether Roberts and his fellow justices would commit to disqualifying themselves from cases in which they had financial conflicts and adopt a code of conduct. Judicial conflict-of-interest rules do not apply to high court's justices.
Read more:
U.S. judiciary to review conflict policies after report on judges' stocks
U.S. House Democrats plan hearings on judges' conflicts of interest
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October 15, 2021 at 01:07AM
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