Senator Warren: The Supreme Court Needs a Code of Ethics
By Senator Elizabeth Warren
The American judicial system functions on a basic principle: that no person is above the law. However, faith in the Supreme Court has dropped to historic lows, while a pattern of ethical misconduct has called into question the integrity of the nation’s highest court.
Most recently, Justice Clarence Thomas’ failure to disclose lavish gifts and travel arrangements demonstrated the lack of accountability for members of the Court. This breach of ethics is nothing new for the Court — for decades, Supreme Court justices have failed to follow basic standards of ethics, as the nine justices who sit on the bench are the only U.S. judges who do not follow an enforceable code of conduct.
Current members of the Supreme Court have ruled on cases with personal and financial conflicts of interest, refusing to recuse themselves even when hearing cases that could impact their own family members. They’ve spoken at events and attended all-expenses-paid trips funded by groups doing business before the Court. And they’ve weighed in on cases that impact the businesses in which they directly own stock.
While other federal judges are required to recuse themselves in the event of a conflict of interest — and face consequences if they do not — those rules don’t apply to Supreme Court justices. Rather, members of the Court voluntarily choose when to recuse themselves from a case, and they have no obligation to explain their decisions. It’s clear that the status quo isn’t enough to prevent financial influence and corruption — and it’s why we need a binding, enforceable code of conduct to ensure that members of the nation’s highest court are held to the highest standard of ethics.
Recent polling from Data for Progress shows that this idea has bipartisan approval: 77 percent of voters support requiring Supreme Court justices and their spouses to adopt a code of ethics. Doing so would help root out corruption and end financial conflicts of interest, reinstating checks and balances to a system that has been broken for far too long.
That’s why my colleagues and I introduced the Judicial Ethics and Anti-Corruption Act, which would tighten standards for the federal judiciary. The Act would ensure that Supreme Court justices are bound to the same ethical code as other federal judges.
The recent polling from Data for Progress shows 73 percent of likely voters support this approach, whereas only 17 percent of likely voters support allowing the Supreme Court to create its own code of ethics. The Act would also create a bipartisan committee appointed by Congress to enforce violations of that code, a proposal supported by a plurality of likely voters in both parties. Restoring faith in the judiciary requires that Supreme Court justices are not given different standards than any other judge — and that all judges are held accountable to the American people.
Preventing corruption in our judicial system does not end at the steps of the Supreme Court. Too often, judges across the federal judiciary fail to disclose conflicts of interest and use their positions of power for personal and financial gain. Our legislation would ban all federal judges from owning individual stocks and securities — a step supported by a majority of likely voters — as well as tighten restrictions on gifts and privately funded travel. It would also improve transparency in federal court proceedings while creating new mechanisms to hold all judges accountable for ethical misconduct.
Our democracy cannot function if the American people lose faith in one of its three branches. And someone’s ability to find justice in court shouldn’t depend on their ability to influence judges behind the scenes. We’ve got a long way to go to root out financial corruption in all levels of government — but holding the Supreme Court justices to the same ethical standards as all other federal judges is the first step to ensuring our government by the people finally works for the people.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) is a Democrat from Massachusetts.