May a judicial candidate reuse old signs that identify a former committee or treasurer?
Apply this to your situation
This page answers the general question as of 2015. 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 judge planning to run for reelection asked whether old signs naming a former campaign committee could be reused if the new campaign had no committee or a different treasurer.
Applying Rules 4.1(A)(9), 4.2(A)(1), and 4.2(A)(5), the Commission said the signs could not be used as printed when the committee information was inaccurate. It allowed reuse if the old information was covered, cut out, or removed. The Commission also concluded that the old signs had no resale value under the election law it discussed.
In practice
The opinion permits reuse of the old signs only after inaccurate committee and treasurer information is removed or concealed.
Common questions
Q: May the signs be reused as printed with inaccurate committee information?
A: No. The Commission found that wording would misstate the campaign structure.
Q: How could the candidate reuse them?
A: The Commission allowed covering, cutting out, or removing the old committee information.
Background and rules framework
Rule 4.1(A)(9) addresses false or misleading campaign statements. Rule 4.2(A)(1) concerns judicial independence; Rule 4.2(A)(5) requires corrective action concerning campaign misrepresentations. The opinion also discusses the value of old signs under W. Va. Code § 3-8-5.
Citations and references
West Virginia Code of Judicial Conduct:
- Rules 4.1(A)(9), 4.2(A)(1), and 4.2(A)(5), campaign statements and corrections.
Statute:
- W. Va. Code § 3-8-5, things of value.
See also
Source
- Landing page: West Virginia Judicial Investigation Commission advisory opinions
- Original PDF: JIC Advisory Opinion 2015-23, redacted
Original opinion text
Best-effort transcription from a scanned PDF. Minor errors may remain; the linked PDF is authoritative.
JUDICIAL INVESTIGATION COMMISSION
City Center East - Suite 1200 A
4700 MacCorkle Ave., SE
Charleston, West Virginia 25304
(304) 558-0169 • FAX (304) 558-0831
December 21, 2015
Re: JIC Advisory Opinion 2015-23.
Dear
Your recent request for. an advisory opinion was reviewed by the Judicial Investigation Commission. The factual scenario giving rise to your request is as follows: You plan on running for re-election in 2016. At this time you think you may finance your own campaign and not have a campaign committee. You have some old campaign, signs you would like to use in the election. The campaign materials say in very small letters
"Paid for by Committee to Elect
You want to
know if you can use the signs even though you will not have a campaign committee. You also want to know whether you may use them if you decide to have a campaign committee, but use a different treasurer.
To address your questions the Commission reviewed Rules 4.1{A)(9), 4.2{A)(l) and 4.2{A)(S) of the new Code of Judicial Conduct. Rule 4.l{A)(9) states that a judge or judicial candidate "shall not knowingly, or with reckless disregard for the truth, make any false or misleading statement." Rule 4.2{A){l) provides that a judge or candidate subject to public election "shall act at all times in a manner consistent with the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary." Meanwhile, Rule 4.2{A)(S) states that a judge or judicial candidate "shall take corrective action if he or she learns or any misrepresentations made in his or her campaign statements or materials."
JIC Advisory Opinion 2015-23
December 21, 2015
Page 2 of 2
In applying those Rules to your factual scenario, the Commission's opinion is that you cannot use the signs as printed if you do not have a Committee or have a different treasurer because they would not contain true and accurate information about how your campaign is structured. However, the Commission also concluded that it would not be a violation of the Code of Conduct to use them in your current campaign if you are able to cover, cut out or remove the information from the old campaign materials.
Furthermore, the Commission, as a decisive element of this conclusion, deliberated on the meaning of the phrase "things of value" in WV Code 3-8-5 and the use of the word "value" by the Elections Division of the West Virginia Secretary of State's Office, and then determined that old campaign signs used or prepared for use in a previous political campaign cease to have value when that old campaign ends. They are usually collected by the candidate and placed in the garbage. They may be of some use for their paper value, but it would be difficult to believe that anyone could sell them to another person. They are of no use to anyone other than a limited use by the candidate at a future campaign. Therefore Commission concluded that the signs, having no resell value, have no value under our election laws and can be used as stated in this Advisory Opinion.
It is hoped that this opinion fully addresses the issues which you have raised. If there is any further question regarding this matter do not hesitate to contact the Commission.
Sincerely,
Ronald E. Wilson, Chairperson
Judicial Investigation Commission
REW/tat
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