Rule 5 - Code of Conduct for Commission MembersSECTION ONE: ABUSE OF POSITIONA. No commissioner shall use or attempt to use the commissioner's official position to secure privileges or exemptions for the commissioner or others.B. No commissioner shall attempt, solicit, or agree to accept any gift, favor or anything of value based upon any understanding, either explicit or implicit, that the official actions, decisions or judgment of any commissioner would be influenced thereby. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a commissioner from accepting a public award presented in recognition of public service.C. No commissioner shall request or accept any fee or compensation, on commission related matters.D. Each commissioner shall use the resources, property and funds under the commissioner's official control judiciously and solely in accordance with prescribed statutory and regulatory procedures.E. Each commissioner shall immediately report to the Judicial Selection Commission any attempt to induce the commissioner to violate any of the standards set out above.Amended 06/22/2021, effective 07/01/2021
SECTION TWO: CONFIDENTIALITYA. Under the Constitution of the State of Hawai'i, the commission's deliberations must be confidential. To keep deliberations confidential, information that shall be kept confidential and shall not be disclosed outside of any commission meeting shall include, but not be limited to: information relating to the identity of any applicant; information received from or about current or former applicants and petitioners; the identity of informational sources; and any communications among or votes by commissioners that have transpired in the course of their deliberations on any subject.B. This mandate of confidentiality survives commissioners' terms of office and must be observed in perpetuity. C. The commission shall release lists of its nominees for judicial office concurrent with its submission of each list to the appointing authority. SECTION THREE: CONFLICT OF INTERESTA. Every commissioner shall avoid conflicts of interest in the performance of commission duties. Every commissioner is required to exercise diligence in becoming aware of conflicts of interest, and in disclosing any conflicts to the commission. If a commissioner knows of any personal, business, or legal relationship that a commissioner may have with an applicant or petitioner, including any legal proceeding in which a commissioner is appearing as a party or counsel before an applicant or petitioner, the commissioner must report this fact to the commission. The commission shall then decide the extent to which the involved commissioner shall participate in the proceedings concerning said applicant or petitioner. In the event that a commissioner does not vote, the fact that a commissioner did not vote may be announced publicly. The commission may disclose its decision on this issue. B. No commissioner shall participate in any retention proceeding regarding a judge or justice who has a petition for retention pending before the commission pursuant to Rule 12 if that commissioner has a substantive matter pending before that judge or justice. C. No commissioner shall take an active part in political management or in political campaigns. D. A commissioner shall consider each applicant and petitioner for a judicial office in an impartial, objective manner. No commissioner shall discriminate on the basis of nor manifest, by words or conduct, bias or prejudice based on race, religion, sex, national origin, gender, marital status, sexual orientation or political affiliation in the conduct of the business of the commission.Haw. Jud. Sel. Comm. R. 5
Amended and effective 11/15/2011; further amended and effective 2/13/2013; further amended and effective 1/24/2014; amended 06/22/2021, effective 7/1/2021.