May a Maryland judicial appointee host a meet-and-greet for a political candidate at home?

Plain-English summary

A circuit court master asked whether a political candidate’s meet-and-greet could be hosted at the master’s home. The issue as printed asks about an event without fundraising; the facts paragraph says fundraising would be involved. The Committee’s answer was no.

The Committee reasoned that hosting, or even attending, such an event would likely signal support for that candidate over others seeking the office. Under the then-cited Code of Conduct for Judicial Appointees, Rule 4.2(a) prohibited partisan political activity by an appointee who was not a candidate. Rule 1.3 also barred lending the prestige of the appointee’s position to others.

The Committee concluded that personal time and a private home did not remove those Code restrictions.

In practice

The opinion rejects the described meet-and-greet based on the partisan character of the event and the appointee’s role. Its reasoning does not depend on resolving the source’s conflicting statements about fundraising.

Common questions

Q: Would holding the event at home change the result?

A: No. The Committee said the Code restrictions applied despite the appointee’s use of personal time and home.

Q: Did the Committee require fundraising for the event to be prohibited?

A: No. The printed issue asks about an event without fundraising, while the facts paragraph says fundraising would occur; the Committee relied on partisan political activity and judicial prestige.

Q: Could the appointee attend another person’s candidate event?

A: The Committee said even attendance would likely convey support for the candidate.

Background and rules framework

The opinion applies the then-cited Maryland Code of Conduct for Judicial Appointees, Maryland Rule 16-814, Rules 1.2(a) and (b), 1.3, and 4.2(a).

Citations and references

Maryland Code of Conduct for Judicial Appointees:

• Maryland Rule 16-814, Rules 1.2(a) and (b), 1.3, and 4.2(a).

See also

• MD Judicial Ethics Op. 2015-47: Spouse’s political campaign

Source

• Landing page: Maryland Judicial Ethics Committee opinion index
• Original PDF: Opinion 2014-14

Original opinion text

Reproduced from the official source for research purposes. The linked source is authoritative.

Maryland Judicial Ethics Committee
Opinion Request Number: 2014-14
Date of Issue: April 16, 2014

■ Published Opinion Unpublished Opinion Unpublished Letter of Advice

Judicial Appointee May Not Host Social Event for Political Candidate Issue: May a judicial appointee host a “meet and greet” for a political candidate, at his or her home, provided that there is no fundraising involved? Answer: No. Facts: A Circuit Court master (the “Requestor”) has inquired as to whether it would be permissible to host a “meet and greet” at his or her home, where there would be fundraising involved. Discussion: The Code of Conduct for Judicial Appointees (“Code”) governs the conduct of a Circuit Court master. See “Application” section (a) of Maryland Rule 16-814. Rule 16-814 provides, in pertinent part: Rule 1.2. PROMOTING CONFIDENCE IN THE JUDICIARY

(a) A judicial appointee shall act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary.

(b) A judicial appointee shall avoid conduct that would create in reasonable minds a perception of impropriety. Rule 1.3. AVOIDING LENDING THE PRESTIGE OF THE POSITION

A judicial appointee shall not lend the prestige of the judicial appointee's position to advance the personal or economic interests of the judicial appointee or others, or allow others to do so.

Rule 4.2. POLITICAL CONDUCT OF JUDICIAL APPOINTEE WHO IS NOT A CANDIDATE

(a) A judicial appointee who is not a candidate for election shall not engage in any partisan political activity.
A judicial appointee hosting a “meet and greet” for a political candidate at his or her home, or even attending such an event at the home of another, would likely convey to others the impression that the judicial appointee supports that candidate, as opposed to others seeking the same office. Hosting the “meet and greet” constitutes partisan political conduct under Rule 4.2, which specifically prohibits partisan political activity for judicial appointees who are not themselves candidates for election. In addition, Rule 1.3 requires judicial appointees not to lend the prestige of their office to advance the interests of others. Maryland Judicial Ethics Committee Opinion Request Number: 2014-14 Date of Issue: April 16, 2014
■ Published Opinion  Unpublished Opinion Unpublished Letter of Advice Page 2 of 2

While it is understandable that the Requestor may wish to engage in activities on his or her personal time that are unrelated to his or her duties as a master, the Code, however, does not permit partisan political activity for judicial appointees. Comment [2] to Rule 1.2 states: “A judicial appointee should expect to be the subject of public scrutiny that might be viewed as burdensome if applied to other citizens, and must accept the restrictions imposed by this Code.”

In light of the reasoning set forth above, the Committee advises against the Requestor hosting a “meet and greet” for a political candidate at his or her home.

Application: The Judicial Ethics Committee cautions that this opinion is applicable only prospectively and only to the conduct of the requestor described in this opinion, to the extent of the requestor’s compliance with this opinion. Omission or misstatement of a material fact in the written request for opinion negates reliance on this opinion.
Additionally, this opinion should not be considered to be binding indefinitely. The passage of time may result in amendment to the applicable law and/or developments in the area of judicial ethics generally or in changes of facts that could affect the conclusions of the Committee. If you engage in a continuing course of conduct, you should keep abreast of developments in the area of judicial ethics and, in the event of a change in that area or a change in facts, submit an updated request to the Committee.