Supreme Court, under pressure, issues ethics code specific to justices

Supreme Court justices stung by controversies over the court’s ethics pledged Monday to follow a broad code of conduct promoting “integrity and impartiality,” but without a way to enforce its standards against those who fall short.

The absence of an ethics code has given the impression “that the Justices of this Court, unlike all other jurists in this country, regard themselves as unrestricted by any ethics rules,” said the statement, signed by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and his eight colleagues. “To dispel this misunderstanding, we are issuing this Code, which largely represents a codification of principles that we have long regarded as governing our conduct.”

The code contains broadly worded sections relating to outside relationships, participation in cases that could bring financial gain to family members, the use of a justice’s staff and limits on joining fundraising activities for groups.

The code does not squarely confront questions about lavish trips and gifts that some justices have received from billionaire friends, or questions about recusals.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), the lead sponsor of a bill to impose ethics rules on the court, called the code “a long-overdue step by the justices” but said it is not binding “unless there is a mechanism to investigate possible violations and enforce the rules.”

“The honor system has not worked for members of the Roberts Court,” Whitehouse said in a statement.

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