1/14/2024 0 Comments Most recent supreme court justice![]() ![]() Kagan and Alito recused more than 130 times each. The justices recused in roughly 3% of the estimated 24,000 appeals logged during the period. The recusal review included the October 2018 term through the first half of the current one. Justices have called recusal a personal decision and have rebuffed suggestions to explain their decisions, which are unreviewable. ![]() Roberts has said the justices may seek advice from the court’s legal office or consult their colleagues when weighing recusal decisions. A rule adopted by the court in 2019 to make it easier to identify financial or personal conflicts requires attorneys to disclose certain information about their clients. The process includes an initial conflict check in chambers. The high court declined to discuss recusals but has said they are largely left to the individual justices and their staffs. But Indiana law professor and legal ethics expert Charles Geyh called the Supreme Court’s handling of recusals a “black box.” Lower federal courts have for years used software to help flag conflicts. The code of conduct for lower court judges is considered guidance and Chief Justice John Roberts says the high court abides by it. That includes any personal bias against or ties to a party, as well as conflicts arising from financial holdings. 6-related case because his wife, Ginni, lobbied the White House to overturn the 2020 election.įederal law requires that justices and other federal judges disqualify themselves when impartiality could be questioned. Most recently, Thomas faced calls to sit out a Jan. Justice Clarence Thomas almost never recuses, despite outside pressure to do so. The court hears about 70 cases each term.Īlito’s stock holdings appear to account for dozens of recusals, while Kagan’s stint as US solicitor general in the Obama administration are likely related to most of hers. A small number occurred at the merits stage and off the so-called shadow docket, leaving the nine-member bench shorthanded when deciding those matters. Nearly all recusals involved petitions that were denied review. The non-profit watchdog also compiles recusal data, and some of its analysis was included in this report. “Recusal explanations would help the public understand the justices’ entanglements so we’d have a standard by which to hold them to and a way to see if the nine are following the recusal law in a consistent manner,” said Gabe Roth, executive director of Fix the Court. Legislative proposals and other calls for a code of conduct applicable to the justices have sought more openness about recusal. The period covers a changing court with advocacy groups, ethics scholars, and lawmakers from both parties pressing for more transparency about how the justices do their work behind closed doors. But financial disclosures, orders, and case records provide insight into their decision-making. Neither they nor the court are required to give reasons. Virtually all of the more than 750 recusals identified in a review of court orders lacked an explanation of why the justices avoided participating. US Supreme Court justices recused themselves in roughly 3% of appeals since 2018, with Samuel Alito and Elena Kagan doing so most often, a Bloomberg Law analysis shows.
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