At an event on Monday at the University of Minnesota Law School, Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett said that “it would be a good idea” for the high court to adopt an ethics code as questions around the conduct of some justices linger — but said that all nine members of the bench “are very committed to the highest standards of ethical conduct.”
“It would be a good idea for us to do it, particularly so that we can communicate to the public exactly what it is that we’re doing in a clearer way than perhaps we’ve been able to do so far,” Barrett said.
“I’ll say this,” she added: “There is no lack of consensus among the justices — there’s unanimity among all nine justices — that we should, and do, hold ourselves to the highest ethical standards possible.”
Barrett went on to say that what she had in mind for a code was “how best to express what it is that we are already doing” and noted that they already file financial disclosure forms, and said that she “personally” still follows the rules that applied to her when she was an Appeals Court judge, adding that some of her colleagues do the same.
She demurred when asked about a timeline for when the Supreme Court might come to an agreement on a code.
“I think that’s something that I can’t really speak for the court about or make any sort of guess,” she said.
Barrett, one of the newest members of the bench and one of three appointed during former President Donald Trump’s sole term in the White House, joins a growing chorus of justices who are calling for the high court to adopt an ethics code.
Justice Elena Kagan last month said in an interview at Notre Dame Law School that “it would be a good thing for the court to do that.” Justice Brett Kavanaugh said he’s “hopeful that there will be some concrete steps taken soon” on an ethics code at a judicial conference last month.
Congressional Democrats have called for an ethics code for the Supreme Court, holding a hearing earlier this year following a series of reports about the justices have benefitted from their time on the bench. The nonprofit news outlet ProPublica reported that Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito took luxury vacations with Republican megadonors that went unreported, and a report from The Associated Press that Justice Sonia Sotomayor, aided by her staff, advanced sales of her books through college visits over the past decade.
“Unlike every other federal official, Supreme Court justices are not bound by a code of ethical conduct,” Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who has largely led the crusade for an ethics code, said in July. “They are the most powerful judges in America and yet, they are not required to follow even the most basic ethical standards.”
Earlier this year, Democrats in the Senate advanced a bill that would establish a new code of ethics for the Supreme Court, but Republicans objected, saying that it violates the separation of powers and would represent overreach by the legislative branch.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., called the bill "dead as fried chicken,” while Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley said that the bill “is not about oversight or accountability, it is about harassing and intimidating the Supreme Court.”