What disclosure did a family law master owe in cases possibly involving former child advocate work?

Plain-English summary

A family law master formerly worked as a child advocate, at one point serving as the only attorney in a county with a large caseload. The master recognized mandatory recusal in cases where the master had acted as attorney, but asked about files that did not show whether that happened.

The Commission applied former Canon 3E(1) and said the master should disclose the former employment and responsibilities to parties in those cases. Parties or their lawyers could then decide whether to move for recusal.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1995, before West Virginia adopted its 2015 Code of Judicial Conduct, effective December 1, 2015. Subsequent rule changes or later opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context and verify the current Code before relying on the letter's conclusion.

Common questions

Q: What about cases where the master had actually served as lawyer?

A: The requester identified recusal in those cases as mandatory; the Commission addressed the uncertain files.

Q: What was required in uncertain cases?

A: Disclosure of the prior child advocate employment and responsibilities to the parties.

Background and rules framework

Former Canon 3E(1) addressed disqualification. The letter applied it to disclosure where the requester’s prior involvement could not be determined from a case file.

Citations and references

West Virginia Code of Judicial Conduct (former):

• Canon 3E(1), disqualification.

See also

• WV JIC Advisory Opinion 1995-31: Son at Attorney General’s office

Source

• Landing page: West Virginia Judicial Investigation Commission advisory opinions
• Original PDF: JIC Advisory Opinion 1995-27, redacted
• Code adoption date: West Virginia JIC 2015 Annual Report

Original opinion text

Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain; the linked PDF is authoritative.

JUDICIAL INVESTIGATION COMMISSION
212 Dickinson Street
Post Office Box 1629
Charleston, West Virginia 25326-1629
(304) 558-0169 FAX (304) 558-0831

November 1, 1995

Re: JIC Advisory Opinion 1995-27

Dear
Your recent letter to Counsel for the Judicial
Investigatio n Commission was reviewed at the Commission's recent meeting. In that corresponden ce you state that you currently serve as a Family Law Master for county and formerly were employed as a child advocate in · County from October, 1990, through April, 1993. You state in your letter that for a sufficient portion of your employme.1-.t with the Child Advocate Office, you were the only attorney in
County with a caseload of approximatel y ten thousand open cases. You correctly state that your recusal is mandatory in those cases in which you served as an attorney while working for the Child Advocate Office. You state that a problem arises in those cases involving parties with names beginning in L to z when there is no indication in the file that you served as counsel in those cases.
After reviewing the information provided in your letter the Commission feels that canon 3E(l) would require you to disclose your prior employment and responsibili ties as a child advocate to the parties in those cases. The parties or their lawyers would then determine whether to file a motion to recuse you from that case. Enclosed is a copy of a recent advisory opinion dated August 15, 1995, which deals at some length with the question of disqualifica tion.
If you have any further questions regarding this matter, do not hesitate to conta t the ommission. yours,

Chairman

FLF,II/bl
Enclosure