Reading Room Document

Ethical Issues Raised by Assistant United States Attorneys' Representation of Judges

A number of concerns are raised under the American Bar Association's canons of professional ethics when an Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) is asked to represent a judge in his or her district in a suit brought by a private individual. These ethical concerns could be handled through disclosure of prior or pending representation to opposing counsel, by arranging to have the judge represented by an AUSA from another district, or by retaining private counsel to represent the judge. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/22786/download.

November 2, 1981