William L. Pfeifer, Jr.

Alabama Appellate Lawyer with a Statewide Appellate Law Practice

  • Home
  • Blog
  • About Bill Pfeifer
  • Contact
  • Appeals
    • Criminal Appeals
    • Civil Appeals
    • Divorce Appeals
    • Personal Injury
  • Referrals
  • Legal Forms
  • Law Links
  • FAQS
You are here: Home » Law Links Directory » Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics » ACJA Canon 2: A judge should avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all his activities

ACJA Canon 2: A judge should avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all his activities

Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics

Canon 2. A judge should avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all his activities.

A. A judge should respect and comply with the law and should conduct himself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.

B. A judge should at all times maintain the decorum and temperance befitting his office and should avoid conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice which brings the judicial office into disrepute.

C. A judge should not allow his family, social, political, or other relationships to influence his judicial conduct or judgment. He should not lend the prestige of his office to advance the private interests of others; nor should he convey or permit others to convey the impression that they are in a special position to influence him. He should not testify voluntarily as a character witness at any hearing before any court, or judicial or governmental commission.

[Amended 5-7-80; Amended 8-25-2004.]

Commentary

Public confidence in the judiciary is eroded by irresponsible or improper conduct by judges. A judge must avoid all impropriety and appearance of impropriety. He must expect to be the subject of constant public scrutiny. He must, therefore, accept restrictions on his conduct that might be viewed as burdensome by the ordinary citizen and should do so freely and willingly.

The testimony of a judge as a character witness injects the prestige of his office into the proceeding in which he testifies and may be misunderstood to be an official testimonial. This Canon, however, does not exempt a judge from testifying if he is officially summoned. This Canon does not per se prohibit a judge from writing a letter of recommendation disclosing personal information of someone’s experience, character or ability. Such letter, however, should not be written if the recipient is engaged in litigation before the judge or it is likely that the recipient will be engaged in proceedings that would ordinarily come before the court.

Note from the reporter of decisions: The order amending Canon 2.C., Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics, effective August 25, 2004, is published in that volume of Alabama Reporter that contains Alabama cases from 879 So.2d.

Search

Recent Posts

  • Can you impeach your own witness in Alabama? Rule 607 provides the answer.
  • Hurricane Irma Courthouse Closures
  • Drug Forfeiture Appeals – Car forfeiture reversed based on innocent owner defense
  • Alabama Forfeiture Statute – Ala. Code Section 20-2-92 Drug Crime Forfeitures
  • Motion for Mistrial for undisclosed evidence in Alabama felony cases must be timely made
  • Alabama prison rape, violence, overcrowding, and abuse investigated by Department of Justice (DOJ)
  • Motion to continue trial due to an absent or unavailable witness – appealing the denial of a continuance in Alabama criminal court cases (video)
  • Alabama appellate lawyer video – new video on Alabama appeals added to YouTube
  • Alabama ‘McLendon standard’ in child custody modification appeals
  • AAJ Paralegal of the Year Award – Nominations Now Open

Avvo

Lawyer William Pfeifer | Top Attorney Appeals

Alabama Appellate Lawyer on Facebook

Alabama Appellate Lawyer

Archives

Categories

  • About.com
  • Appeals
  • Books
  • Business
  • Civil Procedure
  • Crime
  • Criminal Law
  • Criminal Procedure
  • Drug Crimes
  • Evidence
  • Family Law
  • Forfeiture
  • Immigration
  • Juveniles
  • Law Practice Management
  • Lawyer Referral Services
  • Legal Forms
  • Legal News
  • Legal Research
  • Legal Resources
  • Motions
  • Office Updates
  • Sex Crimes
  • Statutes
  • Technology
  • Video
  • Website

AVVO

Lawyer William Pfeifer | Top Attorney Appeals

Follow Us On Facebook

Alabama Appellate Lawyer

Tags

Alabama Alabama courthouse Alabama courthouse photos Alabama Court of Civil Appeals Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals Alabama forfeiture Alabama Rules of Criminal Procedure Alabama State Bar Alabama Supreme Court Appeal Appeals and Writs Appellate court Boglin Closing argument conviction Criminal Law Criminal Procedure divorce drug forfeiture effective assistance of counsel Examiner.com felony conviction Florida guilty plea ineffective assistance of counsel law Lawyer Lawyers and Law Firms legal forms legal research legal resources legal writing Plea post-conviction Practice of law Rule 32 Services Strickland Strickland v Washington Supreme Court Trial court United States United States Supreme Court updates Website

Pages

  • *WP Mobile Edition (Blog Index)
  • *WP Mobile Edition (Contact)
  • About Bill Pfeifer
  • Alabama Appellate Attorney
  • Alabama Appellate Lawyer
  • Alabama Civil Appeals Lawyer
  • Alabama Civil Litigation
  • Alabama Divorce Appeal Lawyer
  • Alabama Legal Forms
  • Alabama Personal Injury Lawyer – Litigation and Appeals
  • Appeals
  • Appellate Criminal Defense
  • Areas of Practice
  • Articles Elsewhere
  • Blog
  • Books
  • Contact
  • Family Law
  • FAQS – Frequently Asked Questions
  • Law Links Directory
  • Legal Forms
  • Newsletter
  • Office Locations
  • Payment
  • Privacy Policy
  • Referrals from Lawyers

Copyright © 2021 · News Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in