May a municipal judge teach law courses at a police academy whose graduates may later appear in court?
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This page answers the general question as of 1994. Ask about yours and see what the current rules of professional conduct in your state say for your facts, with citations.
Plain-English summary
A municipal judge asked about teaching courses at the Prichard Police Department Academy. The Commission said Canon 4 encouraged law-related teaching, subject to judicial duties and impartiality.
It also said the fact that police academy students might later appear before the judge in municipal court did not by itself disqualify the judge from their cases.
Currency note
This opinion was issued in 1994, 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: May the municipal judge teach at the academy?
A: Yes. The Commission says the activity is permitted and encouraged under Canon 4.
Q: Do former students’ appearances in court automatically require recusal?
A: No. The opinion rejects automatic disqualification on that fact alone.
Background and rules framework
The opinion quotes Canon 4A on teaching concerning law and the legal system, subject to judicial duties and impartiality.
Citations and references
Alabama Canons of Judicial Ethics:
- Canon 4, Canon 4A.
Other opinions cited:
- Alabama JIC Opinions 93-471 and 91-433, concerning judges’ law-related teaching.
See also
Source
- Landing page: Alabama JIC advisory opinions
- Original PDF: Advisory Opinion 94-515
- Canon history: Alabama JIC, Canons of Judicial Ethics
Original opinion text
Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.
94-515
Judicial Inquiry Commission
800 SOUTH MCDONOUGH STREET
SUITE 201
MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA 36104
January 28, 1994
This is in response to your request for an advisory opinion from the Judicial Inquiry Commission. Your question is whether, as a municipal judge, you may instruct educational courses at the Prichard Police Department Academy. It is the opinion of this Commission that a judge may teach and instruct educational courses at a police department academy. This type of activity is encouraged by Canon 4 which, in pertinent part, provides: “A judge, subject to the proper performance of his judicial duties, may engage in the following quasi-judicial activities, if in doing so he does not case doubt on his capacity to decide impartially any issue that may come before him: “A. He may speak, write, lecture, teach, and participate in other activities concerning the law, the legal system, and the administration of justice.” See Advisory Opinions 93-471 (A judge may ethically teach courses on Alabama Drugs Laws and Moot Court at the Southwest Alabama Police Academy.) and 91-433 (A full- time elected judge may teach a law related course on a part-time basis so long as 1) in doing so he does not cast doubt on his capacity to decide impartially any issue that may come before him, and 2) does not detract from the dignity of his office or interfere with the performance of his judicial duties.). The singular fact that many of the students as police officers will eventually appear before you in municipal court does not, in and of itself, constitute a basis for your disqualification in those cases. This opinion has been considered by the entire Commission and is the opinion of the Commission.
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