DISCUSSION
Canon 5B
of the Nevada Code of
Judicial Conduct
provides:
A judge
shall not engage in any
political activity
except (i) as authorized
under any other Section
of this Code, (ii) on
behalf of measures to
improve the law,* the
legal system or the
administration of
justice, or (iii) as
expressly authorized by
law.
No other
relevant section of the
Code authorizes judges
to be members of, or to
participate in, clubs
and committees of a
political party. In
fact, the Code sections
which touch on the
political activities of
judges suggest that it
would be inappropriate
for a judge to continue
to be a member of and to
participate in such
clubs and committees.
Canon 5
provides that a judge
shall refrain from
inappropriate political
activities. Its Sections
then provide some
specific examples of
inappropriate political
activities. Canon 5A(1)
includes a list of
political activities in
which a judge may not
engage. They include
acting as a leader or
holding office in a
political organization,
publicly endorsing or
publicly opposing
another candidate for
public office, making
speeches on behalf of a
political organization,
or soliciting funds for
a political organization
or candidate. Although
one might contend that,
by implication, those
provisions would allow a
judge to be a member of
a club or committee of a
political party so long
as he or she did not act
as a leader or hold an
office, the Code does
not provide, and is not
written to provide, a
rule to cover every
activity in which a
judge might engage. The
Canons and Sections are
to provide general
guidance and to state
basic standards. See,
Preamble. Thus, the fact
that some activities are
expressly prohibited
does not mean that all
others are permitted.
The more general
standards of other
Canons must be
considered.
For
example, Canon 2
provides that a judge
shall avoid the
"appearance of
impropriety in all of
the judge's activities."
The Commentary to Canon
2A notes that:
The
test for appearance of
impropriety is whether
the conduct would
create in reasonable
minds a perception
that the judge's
ability to carry out
judicial
responsibilities with
integrity,
impartiality and
competence is
impaired.
Canon
3B(2) provides in part
that a judge "shall not
be swayed by partisan
interests." Canon 4
requires that a judge
conduct all of the
judge's extrajudicial
activities so that they
do not (1) cast
reasonable doubt on the
judge's capacity to act
impartially as a judge;
(2) demean the judicial
office; or (3) interfere
with the proper
performance of judicial
duties. It is the
Committee's opinion that
the membership and
participation
contemplated here would,
at the least, create the
appearances and doubt
which those Canons and
Sections are intended to
prevent.
Although
the Commentary to Canon
5A(1) states that a
judge retains the right
to participate in the
political process as a
voter, and to privately
contribute to a
candidate or political
organization, the
remainder of the
Commentary to that
section makes it clear
that what a judge may do
must be done privately.
Finally, Canon 5C(1)(a)(ii)
provides that a judge
may at any time "upon
request, identify
himself or herself as a
member of a political
party". [Emphasis
added]. A judge's
continued participation
or membership in clubs
and committees of a
political party are, in
the judgment of the
Committee, the
equivalent of the
judge's identifying
himself or herself as a
member of a political
party without a request
for such an
identification. See,
Nevada Advisory Opinion
JE06-016, October 6,
2006 (A judge or a
judicial candidate may
not participate in a
parade as part of an
entry sponsored by a
political party because
it identifies the judge
as a member of a
political party without
a request).
