Supreme Court Ethics and Investigations Act

Guidance on Ethics: The Office of Ethics Counsel is designed to advise justices and their spouses on critical matters such as financial disclosures, gifts, political activity, and conflicts of interest (Section 2(a)(2)).

Mandatory Training: To ensure awareness, the bill requires a biannual training course for each justice regarding judicial ethics (Section 2(c)).

Increased Accountability through Reporting: The chief ethics counsel must submit an annual report to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees regarding the advice provided, which includes whether that advice was followed (Section 2(d)).

Formal Complaint Process: The bill establishes a process where specific leadership in Congress can file ethics complaints against justices for review (Section 3(c)(1)).

Investigative Authority: The Office of Investigative Counsel is granted subpoena power to compel witnesses to testify and produce documents or records relevant to investigations (Section 3(b)(1)(A)).

Burdens on Justices and Spouses: The Office of Investigative Counsel has the authority to review and investigate ethics complaints that arise from the actions of a justice's spouse or dependents (Section 3(a)(2)).

Potential for Unwanted Investigations: The Office of Investigative Counsel is empowered to review complaints and potentially open full investigations into the conduct of justices (Section 3(c)(2-3)).

Legal Pressure via Subpoenas: The Chief Investigative Counsel has the power to issue subpoenas to compel individuals to appear and produce evidence, and failure to obey a court order regarding these subpoenas can result in contempt of court charges (Section 3(b)(1)(A-B)).