Standing in the party’s shoes when considering a motion to recuse is one of the key pieces of advice CCL President Robert S. Peck gives judges in an article entitled, “A Jurist and a Lawyer Consider Judicial Recusal after Caperton,” published in the new issue of Judge’s Journal, a publication of the ABA’s Judicial Division. Coauthored with Judge N. Randy Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, Peck reviews the decision in Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Co. (2009), and discusses its implications.

Stating that there is enough experience since the 2009 decision “to know that Caperton-like disqualification motions will not become de rigueur,” Peck indicates that states revising their rules to heed the Supreme Court’s call for objective standards need not adopt “bright-line rules,” but instead reflect state-specific values, mindful of the need to assure a fair hearing.