Judges and Judiciary,
Ethics/Professional Responsibility
Sep. 20, 2024
When does legal error become a judicial ethics violation?
The California Code of Judicial Ethics states that a judicial decision later deemed legally incorrect is not a violation of the code by itself, but "legal error plus" involves additional factors like bad faith or bias that can lead to discipline.
Laura W. Halgren
Judge (ret.)
UCLA School of Law
"Reversed." That appellate court order has been applied to some of my judgments over the years. Most seasoned trial judges have been on the receiving end of such an order at some point in their careers. Do our legal errors constitute ethical violations? Thankfully, no. At least not usually.
The California Code of Judicial Ethics makes clear in Canon 1 that "[a] judicial decision or administrative act later determined to be incorrect legally is not itself...
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