Should I Stay or Should I Go Now: Foreign Law Implications for the Supreme Court's Recusal Problem

I . . . do solemnly swear . . . that I will administer justice without respect to persons, . . . and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me . . . under the Constitution and laws of the United States. Every Supreme Court Justice must take this oath “before they may execute the duties of their appointed office.” But how is this impartiality guaranteed? The recusal process—where a litigant seeks the withdrawal of a Justice who may be perceived as biased or where a Justice removes him or herself from a case due to subjectivity—is one way the Court guarantees impartiality. However, the United States recusal system is deeply flawed. For example, many critics argued that Justice Antonin Scalia should not have participated in Cheney v. United States District Court because of his relationship to Vice President Dick Cheney—who was sued in his official capacity. The public scoffed when Justice Scalia went on a duck-hunting trip with Vice President Cheney just three weeks after the Court granted certiorari. More recently, Justice