Page:Code of Conduct for Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States.pdf/4

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The Justice has served in government employment and in that capacity participated as a judge (in a previous judicial position), counsel, advisor, or material witness concerning the proceeding or has expressed during prior government or judicial service an opinion concerning the merits of the particular case in controversy.|The Justice’s spouse or a person related to the Justice or the Justice’s spouse within the third degree of relationship, or the spouse of such person, is known by the Justice: (i) to have served as lead counsel for a party below; or (ii) to be an equity partner in a law firm that appears before the Court on behalf of a party to the proceeding and the Court has not received written assurance that the income from Supreme Court litigation is permanently excluded from the person’s compensation.|The rule of necessity may override the rule of disqualification.|Neither the filing of a brief amicus curiae nor the participation of counsel for amicus curiae requires a Justice’s disqualification.|A Justice should keep informed about the Justice’s personal and fiduciary financial interests and make a reasonable effort to keep informed about the personal financial interests of the Justice’s spouse and minor children residing in the Justice’s household.|For the purposes of this section:

  1. The degree of relationship is calculated according to the civil law system; the following relatives are within the third degree of relationship: parent, child, grandparent, grandchild, great grandparent, great grandchild, sister, brother, aunt, uncle, niece, and nephew; the listed relatives include whole and half blood relatives and most step relatives;
  2. “fiduciary” includes such relationships as executor, administrator, trustee, and guardian;
  3. “financial interest” means ownership of a legal or equitable interest, however small, or a relationship as director, advisor, or other active participant in the affairs of a party, except that:
    1. Ownership in a mutual or common investment fund that holds securities is not a “financial interest” in

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