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Mo. Sup. Ct. R. 2.04

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Rule 2.04 Application

Code of Judicial Conduct

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Rule Text

RULE 2 CODE OF JUDICIAL CONDUCT

APPLICATION

The application section establishes when the various rules apply to a judge or judicial candidate.

I. APPLICABILITY OF THIS CODE

(A) All provisions of this code apply to all full-time judges, commissioners, and masters. Parts II and III of this section identify the specific provisions of this code that apply to senior judges and other part-time judges, respectively. Canon 4 applies to judicial candidates.

(B) A judge, within the meaning of this code, is anyone who is authorized to perform judicial functions within the judicial branch.

Amendment history: (Adopted Jan. 29, 1998, eff. Jan. 1, 1999. Amended July 20, 2011, eff. Jan. 1, 2012.)

Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)

This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.

Judges have to follow this code of conduct, and it applies differently depending on what kind of judge you're dealing with. Full-time judges, commissioners, and masters must follow all the rules in the code. Senior judges and part-time judges only have to follow certain parts, which are spelled out separately. Anyone running for judge has to follow the rules in Canon 4, which deals specifically with campaign and political conduct.

The rule also explains who counts as a "judge" under this code. It's not just people with the official title of judge. Anyone who has authority to perform judicial functions within the court system is treated as a judge for these purposes, even if their job title is different.

For someone involved in a court case, this matters because it tells you what standards the person handling your case must follow. If you have concerns about a judge's conduct, this rule helps identify whether that person is covered by the code and which parts apply to them based on their role.

Committee Notes

Comment

[1] The rules in this code have been formulated to address the ethical obligations of any person who serves a judicial function and are premised upon the supposition that a uniform system of ethical principles should apply to all those authorized to perform judicial functions.

[2] In recent years many jurisdictions have created what are often called “problem solving” courts, in which judges are authorized by court rules to act in nontraditional ways. For example, judges presiding in drug courts and monitoring the progress of participants in those courts’ programs may be authorized and even encouraged to communicate directly with social workers, probation officers, and others outside the context of their usual judicial role as independent decision makers on issues of fact and law.

II. SENIOR JUDGE

A retired judge who has an application on file with the clerk of the Supreme Court or who is otherwise appointed by the Supreme Court to serve as a senior judge pursuant to article V, section 26.3 of the Missouri Constitution, shall comply with all provisions of this code except Rule 2-3.9 (Service as Arbitrator or Mediator) so long as the judge is in full compliance with Rule 11.09 (Senior Judge Limitations).

III. PART-TIME MUNICIPAL JUDGE

A judge, other than a Senior Judge, who serves on a part-time basis as a municipal judge by election or appointment, shall comply with all provisions of this code:

(A) except:

(1) Rules 2-3.2 to 2-3.15 and Rules 2-4.1 to 2-4.2; and

(2) Rule 2-2.10 (Judicial Statements on Pending and Impending Cases), while not serving as a judge;

(B) but shall not:

(1) practice law in the municipal division of the circuit court on which the judge serves;

(2) act as a lawyer in any matter wherein any underlying facts occurred within the geographic boundaries of the political subdivision for which the judge serves and which matter could be brought by a proceeding in the municipal division of the circuit court in which the judge serves; or,

(3) act as a lawyer in a proceeding in which the judge has served as a judge or in any other proceeding related thereto.

IV. TIME FOR COMPLIANCE

A person to whom this code becomes applicable shall comply immediately with its provisions, except that those judges to whom Rules 2-3.8 (Appointments to Fiduciary Positions) and 2-3.11 (Financial, Business, or Remunerative Activities) apply shall comply with those rules as soon as reasonably possible, but in no event later than one year after the code becomes applicable to the judge.

Comment

[1] If serving as a fiduciary when selected as judge, a new judge may, notwithstanding the prohibitions in Rule 2-3.8, continue to serve as fiduciary, but only for that period of time necessary to avoid serious adverse consequences to the beneficiaries of the fiduciary relationship and in no event longer than one year. Similarly, if engaged at the time of judicial selection in a business activity, a new judge may, notwithstanding the prohibitions in Rule 2-3.11, continue in that activity for a reasonable period but in no event longer than one year.