NY Judges Can Moonlight, But Job Must Pass a 'Conflicts Check'
After 12 years without a pay raise, New York judges are being allowed to moonlight to help make ends meet.
Under relaxed rules announced last month by Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman and approved by the state Court of Appeals, jurists still cannot practice law as a sideline but will be permitted to do other work that doesn’t interfere with their judicial duties, reports the Albany Times-Union.
In a memo this week, the state’s administrative judge described a required “conflicts check” to colleagues and noted various remaining prohibitions, including work that adversely impacts the “dignity” of the judicial office.
Advance approval will be required from the state Office of Court Administration’s counsel and “judges are going to have to fulfill their judiciary responsibilities, so it’s going to have to be at night or on the weekends,” presiding Justice Anthony Cardona of the Appellate Division’s Third Department told the newspaper yesterday, describing the situation as a “sad” one. “There can’t be any conflicts, and they can’t use their judicial offices.”
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Judges Can Moonlight as Artists, Says Ethics Panel”
