State of Washington

Ethics Advisory Committee

Question

May a district court judge, who is running for a superior court position, be pictured in campaign literature in a judicial robe if the caption of the picture indicates that the judge is a district court judge?

Answer

It is proper under CJC Canon 7(B)(1)(c) and (d) for a district court judge, who is running for a superior court position, to be pictured in campaign literature in a judicial robe as long as the caption of the picture indicates that the judge is a district court judge, since this disclosure of the district court position would prevent the material from being misleading or from being misconstrued.

The Supreme Court adopted a new Code of Judicial Conduct effective January 1, 2011. In addition to reviewing the ethics advisory opinions, the following should be noted: CJC 4.1(A)(10) CJC 4.1 Comment [7]

Opinion 88-03

3/11/1988