Ethics Advisory Committee

The most important function of the committee is to give advice with respect to the application of the Code of Judicial Conduct to judicial officers. In addition to issuing opinions since its inception, the committee submits suggested changes to the Code of Judicial Conduct to the Supreme Court for its consideration. Since 1996, the committee has also conducted campaign forums at which it discusses issues, which arise during the course of judicial campaigns.

A judicial officer may request an opinion by submitting a written request.
A hard copy request should be directed to:

Ethics Advisory Committee
Temple of Justice
PO Box 41174
Olympia, WA 98504-1174

Alternatively, an email request for an opinion should be sent to: ethics@courts.wa.gov.

A request for an opinion is confidential and not public unless the Supreme Court directs otherwise. Compliance with an opinion issued by the committee shall be considered as evidence of good faith by the Supreme Court (GR 10(b)) and the Commission on Judicial Conduct (CJCRP 6(C)(2)(F)).

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns regarding ethic issues please send an email to: ethics@courts.wa.gov.

Judge Alan B. Hancock, Chair	Island County Superior Court
Judge Brian Altman	East Klickitat County District Court
Judge Douglas H. Haake	Bonney Lake Municipal Court
Mr. Thomas E. Kelly	Washington State Bar Association
Judge Joel Penoyar	Court of Appeals, Division II
Judge Christine Pomeroy	Thurston County Superior Court