Ethics Committee Advice for Justices whose Staff Attorneys Had Prior Involvement in a Matter -- Committee says justices should disqualify staff attorneys from working on appellate matters if the attorney’s prior service as a lawyer in the proceeding would disqualify a justice who had served in such a capacity.
In CJEO Expedited Opinion 2023-050, the committee concludes appellate justices have an obligation under the California Code of Judicial Ethics and the Code of Ethics for the Court Employees of California to disqualify a staff attorney from working on any part of an appellate matter in which the staff attorney’s prior service as a lawyer in the proceeding would have been disqualifying for the justice had the justice served in such a capacity. (Canon 3E(5).)
Law360 has Appellate Atty Dodges DQ For Earlier Work, Calif. Panel Says -- The California Supreme Court's ethics watchdog has recommended that appellate justices' staff attorneys should be governed by rules similar to those that apply to justices themselves, suggesting attorneys should be disqualified from working on appellate matters if their prior work "would have been disqualifying for the justice had the justice served in such a capacity."
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