032221 SCJEO, JUD 6-2021

• Case Date: March 22, 2021
• Court: South Carolina

JUD 6-2021 Opinion No. 6-2021 South Carolina Judicial Ethics Opinion Advisory Committee on Standards of Judicial Conduct March 22, 2021           LETITIA H. VERDIN, CHAIR          RE: Propriety of a Family Court Judge presiding over a matter in which the lawyer/law firm representing a party is also the owner of a building in which judge’s spouse leases office space.          FACTS          A Family Court judge’s spouse owns and operates a wealth and financial management planning business. The judge’s spouse is sometimes hired by clients of various area attorneys, including attorneys in the firm (“Law Firm”) that is the subject of the judge’s inquiry. The Law Firm owns an office building and has available office space for rent on the second floor. The judge’s spouse is contemplating leasing office space from the Law Firm. The arrangement would be for space only and would not include any shared staff. Separate signage would indicate the spouse’s business name and location within the building. The judge inquires as to whether the judge may preside over matters in which the Law Firm appears if the judge’s spouse does enter into a lease agreement.          CONCLUSION          A Family Court judge is not disqualified from presiding over a case in which one of the attorneys rents office space to judge’s spouse, but the judge should disclose “on the record information that the judge believes the parties or their lawyers might consider relevant to the question of disqualification, even if the judge believes there is no real basis for disqualification.”          OPINION          According to Canon 3E., “a judge shall disqualify himself or herself in a proceeding in which the judge’s impartiality might reasonably be questioned.” Canon 3E lists specific examples of when the judge’s impartiality might be questioned, such as if the judge’s spouse is a party or lawyer in the proceeding; if the judge has or judge’s spouse has more than a de minimis interest in the proceeding; if the judge has a bias concerning a party or lawyer in the proceeding; or if the judge’s spouse is likely to be a material witness. Canon...