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JUDICIAL INVESTIGATION COMMISSION
ADVISORY OPINIONS

In 2021, the Judicial Investigation Commission decided to update the JIC Advisory Opinion Website. All relevant opinions were redacted to remove the identifying information of the requestor and uploaded in their entirety to the website. Importantly, they are now searchable by assigned number, topic and/or Code provision. Obsolete opinions were identified and retired.

Numbers were given to each advisory opinion. The number to the left of the hyphen (-) represents the year in which the advisory opinion was written. The number to the right of the hyphen (-) is the actual opinion number. New topics were created, and each advisory opinion was ascribed one or more for ease of reference. Lengthy summaries were reduced to questions(s) presented and applicable Code Rules have been listed to the right of them. Not every advisory opinion contains a Rule.

Beginning with JIC AO 2015-23 through the current advisory opinion, the Rules cited pertain to the West Virginia Code of Judicial Conduct in effect from December 1, 2015 to the present time. Beginning with JIC Advisory Opinion 1993-02 through JIC Advisory Opinion 2015-19, the Rules cited pertain to the Code in effect from January 1, 1993 through November 30, 2015. Beginning with JIC Advisory Opinion 1985-01 through JIC Advisory Opinion 1992-23, the Rules cited pertain to the Code in effect from January 1, 1973 through December 31, 1992.

Retired Advisory Opinions from 6/6/2023

Retired Advisory Opinions from 12/10/2021

Old to new code conversion

Advisory Opinion Topic Words

 

Complaint Number Topic Question/Code Reference
2002-18 extrajudicial activities and boards/commissions

Can a judge serve on the Board of Directors for the Center for Multicultural Comity? [4C(3)]
2002-16 senior status, extrajudicial activities and hearing examiner

Can a senior status judge serve as an independent hearing examiner for an executive branch agency or other entity? [4F, 6B and 6E]
2002-15 disclosure/disqualification

Is a judge who is named in his/her official capacity in a lawsuit disqualified from presiding over any cases involving a lawyer or firm representing a co-defendant in the same suit? [3B(1) and 3E(1)]
2002-14 senior status, extrajudicial activities and hearing examiner

Can a senior status judge serve as a hearing examiner for an executive branch agency? [4F and 6B]
2002-13 extrajudicial activities, political activities and home

Can a married judge’s home be used by the spouse for charitable fund-raising events?
Can a married judge’s home be used by the spouse for fundraising for political purposes? [4C(3) and 5A(1)]
2002-11 extrajudicial activities, boards/commissions, bail bondsman and signs

Can a family court case coordinator drive a vehicle with a sign advertising a bonding company where his/her spouse is employed?
Can a family court case coordinator serve on the Shenandoah Women’s Center Board of Directors? [2A, 3C(2) and 4C(3)]
2002-10 campaign activities, signs and endorsement

Can a judicial candidate’s signs be placed in public locations where other candidate signs are located?
Can a judicial candidate campaign, travel or visit potential votes with another candidate for office?
Can a judicial candidate solicit campaign support for a family court judge and put up signs for the FCJ candidate? [5A and 5C(3)]
2002-09 disclosure/disqualification

Can a mental hygiene commissioner represent a defendant in a criminal case where the MHC’s new law partner who is also MHC committed the defendant on four separate occasions? [6C]
2002-08 campaign activities and signs

Can a judicial candidate sell or give his/her old signs to another candidate? [None]
2002-07 campaign activities, senior status and resign to run

Can a senior status magistrate run for County Commission without having to resign his/her position? [5A(2), 6A and 6B(1) and (4)]