Opinion
January 17, 2006
THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE SUPREME COURT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE ORDER
Pursuant to Part II, Article 73-a of the New Hampshire Constitution and Supreme Court Rule 51, the Supreme Court of New Hampshire approves amendments, on a temporary basis, to Supreme Court Rule 38, Canon 4(H) and (I) as set forth in Appendix A.
The amendments in Appendix A shall take effect immediately, and shall be referred to the Advisory Committee on Rules for consideration of whether they should be adopted on a permanent basis.
ATTEST: ___________________________ Eileen Fox, Clerk of Court Supreme Court of New Hampshire
APPENDIX A
Amend Supreme Court Rule 38, Canon 4 (H) and (I), on a temporary basis, by deleting said subsections and replacing them with the following:
H. Compensation, Reimbursement and Reporting
(1) Compensation and Reimbursement. A judge may receive compensation and reimbursement of expenses for the extra-judicial activities permitted by this Code, if the source of such payments does not give the appearance of influencing the judge's performance of judicial duties or otherwise give the appearance of impropriety.
(a) Compensation shall not exceed a reasonable amount nor should it exceed what a person who is not a judge would receive for the same activity.
(b) Expense reimbursement shall be limited to the actual cost of travel, food and lodging reasonably incurred by the judge and, where appropriate to the occasion, by the judge's spouse or guest. Any payment in excess of such an amount is compensation.
(2) Public Reports.
(a) For each calendar year up to and including calendar year 2006, a judge shall report on or before April 15 of each year, with respect to the preceding calendar year, whether or not the judge has received any compensation other than judicial salary, and, if so, the nature of the activity for which the compensation was received, the name of the payor and the amount of the compensation so received. The report shall be filed as a public document in the office of the clerk of the New Hampshire Supreme Court.
(b) For calendar year 2007 and each calendar year thereafter, a judge shall file a fully-completed New Hampshire Judicial Branch Financial Disclosure Statement on or before April 15 of each year, with respect to the preceding calendar year. The New Hampshire Judicial Branch Financial Disclosure Statement shall be filed as a public document in the office of the clerk of the New Hampshire Supreme Court.
The form of the New Hampshire Judicial Branch Financial Disclosure Statement shall be approved, by order, by the New Hampshire Supreme Court, and shall require, at a minimum, that a judge report whether or not the judge has received any compensation other than judicial salary, and, if so, the nature of the activity for which the compensation was received, the name of the payor and the amount of the compensation so received. Blank forms may be obtained by request from the clerk of the New Hampshire Supreme Court, and shall also be available on the New Hampshire Judicial Branch website.
Commentary:
See Section 4D(5) regarding reporting of gifts, bequests and loans.
The Code does not prohibit a judge from accepting honoraria or speaking fees provided that the compensation is reasonable and commensurate with the task performed. A judge should ensure, however, that no conflicts are created by the arrangement. A judge must not appear to trade on the judicial position for personal advantage. Nor should a judge spend significant time away from court duties to meet speaking or writing commitments for compensation. In addition, the source of the payment must not raise any question of undue influence or the judge's ability or willingness to be impartial.
Financial disclosure forms, as public documents, should be filed and publicly available in a central location.
I. Disclosure of a judge's income, debts, investments or other assets is required only to the extent provided in this Canon and in Sections 3E and 3F, or as otherwise required by law.
Commentary:
Section 3E requires a judge to disqualify himself or herself in any proceeding in which the judge has an economic interest. See "economic interest" as explained in the Terminology Section. Section 4D requires a judge to refrain from engaging in business and from financial activities that might interfere with the impartial performance of judicial duties; Section 4H requires a judge to report all compensation the judge received for activities outside judicial office. A judge has the rights of any other citizen, including the right to privacy of the judge's financial affairs, except to the extent that limitations established by law and by these Canons are required to safeguard the proper performance of the judge's duties and to avoid the appearance of impropriety.