Rule 3.7 - Participation in Educational, Religious, Charitable, Fraternal, or Civic Organizations and Activities(A) Subject to the requirements of Rule 3.1, a judge may participate in activities concerned with the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice, and those sponsored by or on behalf of educational, religious, charitable, fraternal, or civic organizations not conducted for profit as follows: (1) A judge may assist such an organization or entity in planning related to fund-raising and participating in the management and investment of the organization's or entity's funds. (2) A judge shall not personally participate in the solicitation of such funds or other fund-raising activities, except that a judge may: (a) Solicit funds from members of the judge's family or from other judges over whom the judge does not exercise supervisory or appellate authority; (b) Be listed as an officer, director, or trustee of such an organization on its fund-raising letters, but may not sign that letter or be listed as a judge or as honorable; and (c) Work at a fund-raising event so long as the judge's participation could not be reasonably perceived by others as directly soliciting funds.(3) A judge may solicit membership for such an organization or entity, even though the membership dues or fees generated may be used to support the objectives of the organization or entity, but only if the organization or entity is concerned with the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice. (4) A judge may appear or speak at, receive an award or other recognition at, be featured on the program of, and permit his or her title to be used in connection with an event of such an organization or entity, but if the event serves a fund-raising purpose, the judge may participate only if the event concerns the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice. (5) A judge may make recommendations to such a public or private fund-granting organization or entity in connection with its projects and activities, but only if the organization or entity is concerned with the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice. (6) A judge may serve as an officer, director, trustee, or nonlegal advisor of such an organization or entity, or a governmental entity, unless it is likely that the organization or entity(a) Will be engaged in proceedings that would ordinarily come before the judge; or (b) Will be engaged in adversary proceedings in the court of which the judge is a member, or in any court subject to the appellate jurisdiction of the court of which the judge is a member. (7) A judge may speak, lecture, teach, write, and participate in other extrajudicial activities concerning the law, the legal system, the administration of justice, and nonlegal subjects, subject to the requirements of this Code.(B) A judge may encourage lawyers to provide pro bono publico legal services. (C) A judge's donation to a not-for-profit organization that accepts donations for the purpose of distributing the money collected, after the payment of expenses, to not-for-profit entities providing legal services to low income or elderly persons does not disqualify the judge from presiding over matters in which legal services are provided by those entities.Adopted July 1, 2015, effective 9/1/2015.Advisory Notes - 2015
Rule 3.7 tracks the language and purpose of the 2011 ABA Model Code through Rule 3.7(B), with the terms restated to indicate affirmatively within each subsection what a judge "may" or "shall not" do. The result is much greater precision in articulating activities a judge may engage in relating to educational, religious, charitable, fraternal, and civic organizations than appeared in 1993 Canons 4(B) and 4(C). The redraft also provides greater clarity about the actions a judge may take relating to organizations and entities concerned with the law, the legal system, and the administration of justice. This is consistent with the purpose of the Model Code, as articulated in the following ABA Model Code Comments to Rule 3.1:
| To the extent that time permits, and judicial independence and impartiality are not compromised, judges are encouraged to engage in appropriate extrajudicial activities. Judges are uniquely qualified to engage in extrajudicial activities that concern the law, the legal system, and the administration of justice, such as by speaking, writing, teaching, or participating in scholarly research projects. In addition, judges are permitted and encouraged to engage in educational, religious, charitable, fraternal or civic extrajudicial activities not conducted for profit, even when the activities do not involve the law. |
| Participation in both law-related and other extrajudicial activities helps integrate judges into their communities and furthers public understanding of and respect for courts and the judicial system. |
An earlier draft of this Rule had recommended retaining Canon 4(C)(3)(b) (iii) of the 1993 Code, but with an exception added explicitly authorizing activities allowed by Rule 3.7(A)(4). This could have created confusion because some provisions in 1993 Canon 4(C)(3)(b) (iii) were potentially inconsistent with other provisions in proposed Rule 3.7. Importantly, the key sentence of 1993 Canon 4(C)(3)(b) (iii)-"A judge should not be a speaker or the guest of honor at an event . . . held primarily for fund-raising . . . ."-is aspirational, not mandatory. Pursuant to the fifth paragraph of the new Preamble, drawn from the 2011 Model Code, the sentence's use of "should" indicates that the matter it addresses is "committed to the personal and professional discretion of the judge . . . , and no disciplinary action should be taken for action or inaction within the bounds of such discretion." See also 1993 Code Preamble ("The use of 'should' or 'should not' is intended as a hortatory statement of what is appropriate or inappropriate conduct but not as a binding rule under which discipline may be imposed.").
Rule 3.7 includes the amendment added as Canon 4(C)(3)(c) in 2009 relating to a judge's donations to certain not-for-profit organizations. That amendment is added as new section (C) of Rule 3.7.