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Hi,
The bombshell revelations about corruption at the Supreme Court just won’t stop.
Over the span of eight years, the wife of Chief Justice John Roberts raked in $10.3 million from elite D.C. law firms that frequently appear before the Court, a whistleblower says. Not once did Roberts disclose the money or recuse himself from cases because of it.1
The report about the Roberts's secret millions comes after news that Justice Clarence Thomas accepted millions in lavish gifts and a sweetheart real estate deal from a Republican megadonor, while Justice Neil Gorsuch hid a property sale to one of the nation’s most powerful lawyers.2,3,4
At every other branch of the U.S. government, payments like these would trigger meticulous reporting and careful recusals — if they were allowed at all. But the Supreme Court refuses to adopt an ethical code of conduct, and the chief justice won’t even bother defending that decision to Congress.5,6
That’s why Demand Progress Action has mobilized more than 200,000 people to press Congress to pass the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act, requiring the nation’s highest court to follow basic rules of disclosure and recusal.
The New York Times first reported in February that Jane Roberts was earning big money in commissions from law firms and corporations that do or seek to do business before the Court.7 But $10.3 million?! That's mind-blowing.
Worse yet, this money covers only part of Jane Roberts’s nearly two-decade career as a high-powered legal headhunter, and it includes at least $350,000 paid by the firm Wilmer Hale not long before it argued a case before Chief Justice Roberts.
It reeks of corruption and pay-to-play. But Roberts can get away with it because the Supreme Court has no ethical code of conduct. For the chief justice and his eight colleagues — who are appointed for life and hold tremendous power over our everyday lives — that’s unacceptable.
Supreme Court justices have shown time and again they believe they’re above the law. But momentum for reform is building. The American Bar Association says the Supreme Court needs a binding a code of ethics, and legislation has been introduced in Congress to do just that.8,9
With gratitude for all that you do,
Tihi and the team at Demand Progress Action
Sources:
1. Business Insider, "Jane Roberts, who is married to Chief Justice John Roberts, made $10.3 million in commissions from elite law firms, whistleblower documents show," April 28, 2023.
2. ProPublica, "Clarence Thomas and the Billionaire," April 7, 2023.
3. ProPublica, "Billionaire Harlan Crow Bought Property From Clarence Thomas. The Justice Didn’t Disclose the Deal." April 13, 2023.
4. Politico, "Law firm head bought Gorsuch-owned property," April 25, 2023.
5. The Washington Post, "Supreme Court justices discussed, but did not agree on, code of conduct," February 9, 2023.
6. NPR, "Chief Justice Roberts declines to testify before Senate panel," April 25, 2023.
7. The New York Times, "At the Supreme Court, Ethics Questions Over a Spouse’s Business Ties," January 31, 2023.
8. American Bar Association, "Supreme Court Justices Should Follow Binding Code of Ethics, ABA House Says," February 27, 2023.
9. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., "Murphy, Johnson Reintroduce Bicameral Bill Requiring SCOTUS to Follow Code of Ethics," February 9, 2023.
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