recusal

judge

One who decides

• courtTrial venue or sports surface
• trialJudicial examination of claims
• hearingPerceiving sound waves

bench · disqualification · motion · ruling · appellate · chambers · sidebar · presiding · adjudication · judicial conduct

withdrawal

Act of taking away

• disqualificationRemoval from eligibility
• stepping asideRemoving oneself from position
• abstentionFormal refusal to vote

removal · departure · substitution · replacement · reassignment · stepping down · vacating · excusal

ethics

Study of right conduct

• integrityMoral soundness and consistency
• judicial ethicsStandards governing judge behavior
• code of conductFormal behavioral guidelines

canon · accountability · propriety · transparency · honor · duty · trustworthiness · probity

impartiality

Freedom from prejudice

• objectivityFreedom from personal bias
• neutralityState of taking sides
• fairnessJust and equal treatment

disinterest · fair-mindedness · evenhandedness · detachment · nonpartisanship · unbiased · dispassion · judiciousness · due process

conflict of interest

Compromised impartiality from competing stakes

• self-dealingMisusing fiduciary position
• disclosureAct of revealing information
• improprietyUnsuitable or inappropriate behavior

financial interest · personal relationship · familial ties · prejudgment · vested interest

• expressions of disassociationnot my problem, none of my business, count me out, leave me out, not affiliated
• litigationpleadings, lawsuit, plaintiff, complaint, lawsuits
• board meetingsagenda, minutes, adjourn, adjournment, chairman
• court proceedingstrial, arraignment, verdict, hearing, testimony
• courtroom ethicsconfidentiality, impartiality, conflict of interest, attorney-client privilege, prosecutorial misconduct
• Federal Courtsfederal court, federal courts, district court, district courts, circuit court