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PA Bulletin, Doc. No. 18-722

THE COURTS

Title 207—JUDICIAL CONDUCT

PART II. CONDUCT STANDARDS

[ 207 PA. CODE CH. 33 ]

Amendment of Rules 3.1 and 3.6 of the Code of Judicial Conduct; No. 497 Judicial Administration Doc.

[48 Pa.B. 2757]
[Saturday, May 12, 2018]

Order

Per Curiam

 And Now, this 25th day of April, 2018, it is Ordered, pursuant to Article V, Section 10 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania, that Rules 3.1 and 3.6 of the Code of Judicial Conduct are amended in the following form.

 To the extent that notice of proposed rulemaking would otherwise be required by Pa.R.J.A. No. 103, the immediate promulgation of the amendments is found to be in the interests of justice and efficient administration.

 This Order shall be processed in accordance with Pa.R.J.A. No. 103(b), and the amendments herein shall be effective July 1, 2018.

Annex A

TITLE 207. JUDICIAL CONDUCT

PART II. CONDUCT STANDARDS

CHAPTER 33. CODE OF JUDICIAL CONDUCT

Subchapter A.  CANONS

Canon 3. A judge shall conduct the judge's personal and extrajudicial activities to minimize the risk of conflict with the obligations of judicial office.

Rule 3.1. Extrajudicial Activities in General.

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Comment

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 (3) Discriminatory actions and expressions of bias or prejudice by a judge, even outside the judge's official or judicial actions, are likely to appear to a reasonable person to call into question the judge's integrity and impartiality.

 Examples include jokes or other remarks that demean individuals based upon their race, sex, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, ethnicity, disability, age, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status. For the same reason, a judge's extrajudicial activities must not be conducted in connection or affiliation with an organization that practices invidious discrimination. See Rule 3.6.

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Rule 3.6. Affiliation with Discriminatory Organizations.

 (A) A judge shall not hold membership in any organization that practices invidious discrimination on the basis of race, sex, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation.

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Comment

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 (2) An organization is generally said to discriminate invidiously if it arbitrarily excludes from membership on the basis of race, sex, gender identity or expression, religion, national origin, ethnicity, disability or sexual orientation persons who would otherwise be eligible for admission. Whether an organization practices invidious discrimination is a complex question to which judges should be attentive. The answer cannot be determined from a mere examination of an organization's current membership rolls, but rather, depends upon how the organization selects members, as well as other relevant factors, such as whether the organization is dedicated to the preservation of religious, ethnic, or cultural values of legitimate common interest to its members, or whether it is an intimate, purely private organization whose membership limitations could not constitutionally be prohibited.

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[Pa.B. Doc. No. 18-722. Filed for public inspection May 11, 2018, 9:00 a.m.]


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