State of Washington

Ethics Advisory Committee

Question

May a court provide jurors with an option, by signing a form at the time of their jury service, to donate their compensation for jury services to the jury foundation?

A court has created a jury foundation, a not-for-profit corporation, to obtain furniture and other goods for the comfort of jurors during their service.

Answer

CJC Canon 4(C) provides in part that judges may assist an organization which is devoted to the improvement of the law, the legal system or the administration of justice in raising funds but they should not personally solicit contributions from the public. A jury foundation is a law-related organization. A judicial officer may, therefore, permit a form to be disseminated to jurors giving them the option to donate their compensation for jury services to the jury foundation. The judicial officer’s name, however, should not appear on the form and the judicial officer should not disseminate the form.

Also see Opinions 95-18 and 97-15.

Opinion 99-08

09/21/1999