TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Jan 10, 2025

The U.S. Judicial Conference will not refer U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas or Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for probes into whether they violated ethics rules for alleged disclosure failures. Notification of the decision came in letters to two federal lawmakers and a conservative think tank that had sought the referrals. According to the ABA Journal, the lawmakers were concerned about reports that Thomas failed to disclose financial dealings with two wealthy individuals, while the Center for Renewing America sought Jackson’s referral based on allegations she failed to disclosure some of her husband’s consulting income as well as private contributions to her investiture celebration. The conference noted that both justices had amended their disclosure statements to address these issues, but also expressed skepticism that it even has the authority to refer justices to the DOJ.