When Public Misunderstands a Legal Ruling, Mass. Judges Have an Option
A new Massachusetts court rule allows judges to explain their decisions after the fact—in supplemental memoranda, rather than interviews with the press.
An appendix to the new judicial conduct rule says judges may issue after-the-fact memoranda to alleviate a misunderstanding by the parties or the public, but they should not be issued solely in response to public criticism, the Media Law blog reports.
The Supreme Judicial Court said in an appendix to the new rule that judges should consider four factors when deciding whether to issue memoranda. They are the need to alleviate misunderstanding, the time elapsed, the risk of unfairly affecting appellate review, and the danger that it would suggest opinions are influenced by public criticism.
The new rule takes effect Jan. 1.
Changes to the rules also permit judges to make public comments about their own conduct, rather than their substantive legal rulings, and to discuss pending appellate cases in educational settings, the blog says.
