NORTH CAROLINA COURT OF APPEALS CODE OF CONDUCT FOR STAFF ATTORNEYS AND LAW CLERKS CANON 1 A STAFF ATTORNEY OR LAW CLERK SHOULD CONDUCT HIMSELF OR HERSELF IN A MANNER AS TO UPHOLD AND PROMOTE THE INTEGRITY AND INDEPENDENCE OF THE JUDICIARY An independent and honorable judiciary is indispensable to justice in our society. A staff attorney or law clerk should observe, and should impart to anyone under his or her supervision, high standards of conduct so that the integrity and independence of the judiciary may be preserved and his or her office may reflect a devotion to serving the public. The provisions of this Code should be construed and applied to further those objectives. CANON 2 A STAFF ATTORNEY OR LAW CLERK SHOULD AVOID IMPROPRIETY AND THE APPEARANCE OF IMPROPRIETY IN ALL HIS OR HER ACTIVITIES A staff attorney or law clerk should not engage in any activities that would put into question the propriety of his or her conduct in carrying out the duties of his or her employment. He or she should not allow his or her family, social, or other relationships to influence his or her judgment or the performance of the duties of his or her employment. He or she should not lend the prestige of his or her position to advance the private interests of others; he or she should not convey the impression that he or she is in the position to influence the Court or any judge, nor permit others to convey the impression that they are in a special position to influence him or her. CANON 3 A STAFF ATTORNEY OR LAW CLERK SHOULD PERFORM THE DUTIES OF HIS OR HER OFFICE IMPARTIALLY AND DILIGENTLY The employment duties of a staff attorney or law clerk take precedence over all his or her other activities. His or her duties include all the duties assigned by the employing judge or the Court of Appeals. In the performance of these duties the following standards apply: A. A staff attorney or law clerk shall respect and comply with the law and should conduct himself or herself at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary. B. A staff attorney or law clerk shall be faithful to the highest standards of his or her profession and maintain professional competence in it. He or she should be patient, dignified, courteous, and fair to all persons with whom he or she deals in the performance of his or her duties. He or she should diligently discharge the responsibilities of his or her position in an efficient, fair-minded, and professional manner. C. A staff attorney or law clerk should never perform any function of his or her position in a manner which improperly favors any litigant or attorney, nor should he or she imply that he or she is in a position to do so. D. A staff attorney or law clerk shall disqualify himself or herself in a manner in which his or her impartiality might reasonably be questioned, including but not limited to instances where: (1) he or she has a personal bias or prejudice concerning the matter: (2) he or she served as a lawyer in the matter in controversy; or a lawyer with whom he or she previously was associated in private practice, either as lawyer or law clerk, served during such association as a lawyer concerning the matter; (3) he or she, or his or her spouse, or any person within the third degree of relationship to either of them, is known to have an interest that could be substantially affected by the outcome of the proceeding; (4) he or she, or his or her spouse, or any person within the third degree of relationship to either of them, is a party to the proceeding, or an officer, director, or trustee of a party, or a lawyer in the proceeding. CANON 4 A STAFF ATTORNEY OR LAW CLERK MAY ENGAGE IN ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE LAW, THE LEGAL SYSTEM, AND THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE A staff attorney or law clerk, subject to the proper performance of his or her duties, may engage in the following activities: A. He or she may speak, write, lecture, teach, and participate in other activities concerning the law, the legal system, court administration, and the administration of justice. B. He or she may serve as a member, officer, or director of an organization or governmental agency devoted to the improvement of the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice. C. He or she may promote the development of professional organizations and foster the interchange of technical information and experience with others in his or her profession. He or she may make himself or herself available to the public at large for speaking engagements and public appearances designed to enhance the public’s knowledge of the operation of the court system. CANON 5 A STAFF ATTORNEY OR LAW CLERK SHOULD REGULATE HIS OR HER EXTRA-OFFICIAL ACTIVITIES TO MINIMIZE THE RISK OF CONFLICT WITH THE DUTIES OF HIS OR HER POSITION A. Avocational Activities. A staff attorney or law clerk may write, lecture, teach, and speak on non-legal subjects, and engage in the arts, sports, and other social recreational activities, if such avocational activities do not detract from the dignity of his or her employment or interfere with the performance of his or her duties. B. Civic and Charitable Activities. A staff attorney or law clerk may participate in civic and charitable activities that do not detract from the dignity of his or her employment or interfere with the performance of his or her duties. He or she may serve as an officer, director, trustee, or non-legal advisor of an educational, religious, charitable, fraternal, or civic organization and solicit funds for any such organization, except that he or she should not solicit funds from lawyers or persons likely to come before the Court of Appeals. C. Financial Activities. (1) A staff attorney or law clerk should refrain from financial and business dealings that interfere with the proper performance of his or her duties, exploit his or her position, or involve him or her in frequent transactions with lawyers or persons likely to come before the Court of Appeals. Before or during a clerkship or tenure as a staff attorney, a law clerk or staff attorney may seek and obtain employment to commence after the completion of his or her service to the Court; if any law firm, lawyer, or entity with whom a law clerk or staff attorney has been employed or is seeking or has obtained future employment appears in any matter pending before the appointing judge, the law clerk or staff attorney should promptly bring this fact to the attention of the appointing judge or his or her attorney supervisor, and shall have no further involvement in connection with such matter. In relation to such future employment, the law clerk or staff attorney may accept payment of relocation expenses from the future employer. (2) Neither a staff attorney or law clerk nor a member of his or her family residing in his household should accept a gift, bequest, favor, or loan from any person under circumstances that might reasonably be regarded as influencing the performance of his or her duties. D. Practice of Law. A staff attorney or law clerk shall not practice law in any federal, state, or local court, except in his or her official capacity as a staff attorney or law clerk, or undertake to perform legal services for any private client to return for remuneration. This prohibition, however, shall not be construed to preclude the performance of legal work necessary to the management of the personal affairs of the staff attorney or law clerk, his or her spouse, parents, or minor child, so long as: (1) such work is done without compensation; (2) it does not require any act, including the entry of an appearance in a court of this State or of the United States, that would suggest that his or her position is being misused, that preferential treatment is being sought by virtue of the holding of that position, or that would otherwise be inconsistent with his or her primary responsibility to the employing court; (3) such activity does not conflict or reasonably appear to conflict with court duties or will not reflect adversely on the court or create the appearance of impropriety. This provision shall not be construed to preclude staff attorneys or law clerks who are members of the reserve components of the armed forces or National Guard from fulfilling the duties in those organizations. CANON 6 A STAFF ATTORNEY OR LAW CLERK SHOULD REFRAIN FROM CERTAIN POLITICAL ACTIVITY A staff attorney or law clerk may engage in political activity that does not tend to reflect adversely on the dignity of the Court, or interfere with the proper performance the duties of his or her employment, subject to the following limitations: A. He or she should not use the prestige of his or her position to advance political interests of others; B. He or she should not engage in political activity during any period of time within which he or she is expected to perform services for which he or she receives compensation from the State, nor utilize the property, supplies, or funds of the State to solicit support for, or oppose, any candidate, party, or issue in any election. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to interfere with the right of any staff attorney or law clerk to engage as an individual in political activity outside regularly scheduled working hours or at other times when he or she is not performing services for which he or she receives compensation from the State.