May a judge lease office space to the county school superintendent?
Apply this to your situation
This page answers the general question as of 1993. 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 judge proposed renting space in a small building to the county school superintendent for book storage. The Commission said the lease itself was not prohibited by the Canons.
Because the lease would create a landlord-tenant relationship, the judge would have to disqualify from every case in which the county board of education was a party. The opinion says Canon 3D did not permit remission of that disqualification.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1993, 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: Was the lease itself forbidden?
A: No. The Commission found no Canon prohibition on the described arrangement.
Q: What cases would require recusal?
A: Any case in which the county board of education was a party.
Q: Could the parties remit that recusal?
A: No. The opinion says the disqualification could not be remitted.
Background and rules framework
The opinion applies Canon 3C(1) to the landlord-tenant relationship and Canon 3D to remission.
Citations and references
Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics:
- Canon 3C(1), Canon 3D.
Other opinions cited:
- Alabama JIC Opinion 91-432 is cited on landlord-tenant disqualification.
See also
Source
- Landing page: Alabama JIC advisory opinions
- Original PDF: Advisory Opinion 93-485
- Canon history: Alabama JIC, Canons of Judicial Ethics
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
93-485
Judicial Inquiry Commission
800 SOUTH MCDONOUGH STREET
SUITE 201
MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA 36104
June 25, 1993
This is in response to your request for an advisory opinion from the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission. Your request is: May you rent or lease office space in a small building owned by you to the superintendent of the county school system for book storage. It is the opinion of this Commission that the Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics do not prohibit the type of leasing arrangement proposed. However, because such an arrangement would create a landlord-tenant relationship, you would be required, under Canon 3C(l), to disqualify yourself in any case in which the Clay County Board of Education was a party. See Advisory Opinion 91-432. Under Canon 3D, this disqualification could not be remitted. This opinion has been reviewed and approved by the Judicial Inquiry Commission and is adopted as the opinion of the entire Commission.
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