The Line Between Legal Error and Judicial Misconduct: Balancing Judicial Independence and Accountability

Most of the complaints filed with state judicial conduct commissions—generally more than ninety percent—are dismissed every year. Some dismissed complaints do not allege a violation of the code of judicial conduct. For example, litigants sometimes complain that a judge did not return telephone calls because they do not understand that a judge is required to avoid such ex parte communications. Others are dismissed because the evidence does not support the complaint. For example, a Texas prison inmate alleged that the judge who had presided in his trial had been prejudiced against him because they had once been married; the State Commission on Judicial Conduct dismissed his complaint after its investigation revealed that the judge had never been married to the complainant. Most of the complaints that are dismissed every year are dismissed as beyond the jurisdiction of the commissions because, in effect, the complainants are asking the commission to act as an appellate court and review the merits of a judge’s decision, claiming that a judge made an incorrect finding of fact, misapplied the law, or abused his or her discretion. Correcting errors is the role of the appellate courts, however, and a commission cannot vacate an order or otherwise provide relief for