Could a retired circuit judge on inactive status work in sales, finance, banking, or as a law clerk?
Apply this to your situation
This page answers the general question as of 1979. Ask about yours and see what the current rules of professional conduct in your state say for your facts, with citations.
Plain-English summary
The request asked whether a retired circuit judge serving on inactive status could undertake paid work in general sales, real estate sales, banking, finance, or law clerking.
The Commission said none of the listed activities would violate a Canon for a retired circuit judge on inactive status. Its answer was expressly framed around that status and those activities.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1979, after the Alabama Supreme Court’s 1975 adoption of the Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics. Subsequent amendments or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context and verify the current Canons and linked opinion before relying on its conclusions.
Common questions
Q: What activities did the request list?
A: General sales, real estate sales, banking, finance, and law clerking.
Q: Did the Commission find a Canon violation for an inactive retired judge?
A: No. It said the listed paid work would not violate any Canon on the stated inactive-status facts.
Background and rules framework
The letter addresses the activities of a retired circuit judge serving on inactive status. It names the Alabama Canons generally without citing a numbered Canon.
See also
- AL Judicial Ethics Op. 79-56: Inactive Retired Judge’s Law Practice
- AL Judicial Ethics Op. 80-82: Inactive Retired Judge’s Law Practice
Source
- Landing page: Alabama JIC advisory opinions
- Original PDF: Advisory Opinion 79-57
- Canon history: Alabama JIC, Canons of Judicial Ethics
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
79-57
Judicial Inquiry Commission
800 SOUTH MCDONOUGH STREET
SUITE 201
MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA 36104
February 28, 1979
The Judicial Inquiry Commission has considered your request for an opinion in which you ask whether it would be a violation of any Canon of Judicial Ethics for a retired circuit judge serving on inactive status to engage in certain described remunerative activates. These activities include general sales, real estate sales, banking, finance and law clerking. It is the opinion of this Commission that a retired circuit judge serving on inactive status would not violate any Canon of Judicial Ethics by engaging in any of these activities.
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