Rule 2.8 Decorum, Demeanor, and Communication with Jurors
Canon 2: A judge should perform the duties of judicial office impartially, competently and diligently
Rule Text
(A) A judge should require order and decorum in proceedings before the court.
(B) A judge should be patient, dignified, respectful and courteous to litigants, jurors, witnesses, lawyers, and others with whom the judge deals in an official capacity, and should require similar conduct of the judge's staff, court officials, and others subject to the judge's direction and control, including lawyers to the extent consistent with their role in the adversary process.
Comment:
The duty to be respectful of others includes the responsibility to avoid comment or behavior that can reasonably be interpreted as manifesting prejudice or bias towards another on the basis of personal characteristics like race, sex, religion, national origin, disability, age, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status.
In court proceedings, judges or former judges participating as litigants or counsel should not be called by their current or former titles or treated with greater familiarity or deference than other participants.