AMENDED AND CORRECTED 
Opinion No. 01-07 
July 25, 2001

Topic: Judge providing recommendation for lawyer seeking appointment to the governing board of a township political organization.

Digest: A judge may act as a reference or furnish a letter of recommendation for a person seeking appointment to the governing board of a township political committee provided that the reference or recommendation is based upon the judge's personal knowledge of the applicant.

References: Illinois Supreme Court Rule 62B; ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct, Canon 2B (1990) and accompanying commentary; Illinois Judicial Ethics Committee (IJEC) Opinion Nos. 93-9, 95-3, 95-4 and 96-2.

FACTS

A judge receives a letter from the governing board of a township political organization stating that a lawyer, seeking appointment to a vacancy on the board, has submitted the judge's name as a reference. The board requests the judge's opinion regarding the character of the lawyer. The judge has personally known the lawyer for many years.

QUESTION

Does providing a letter of recommendation or serving as a reference for a person seeking appointment to a township political organization's governing board violate Illinois Supreme Court Rule 26B which prohibits a judge from lending "the prestige of judicial office to advance the private interests of others?"

OPINION

The Committee has consistently concluded that a judge may provide a letter of recommendation or serve as a reference for an individual if the recommendation or reference is based upon the judge's personal knowledge. See IJEC Opinion Nos. 93-9 (recommendation a lawyer for federal judgeship), 95-3 (sponsoring admission of a lawyer to practice before the Supreme Court), 95-4 (providing recommendation for employment, college admission or scholarship), and 96-2 (recommendation for a state supported internship or fellowship).

The provisions of Illinois Supreme Court Rule 62B that a judge "should not lend the prestige of judicial office to advance the private interests of others" was not intended to prohibit such activities by judges. The American Bar Association Commentary to Canon 2B makes this point very succinctly:

Although a judge should be sensitive to possible abuse of prestige of office, a judge may, based upon the judge's personal knowledge, serve as a reference or provide a letter of recommendation.

The fact that the requested reference is for an appointive position with a political party organization does not change this result. However, caution should be exercised to assure that the content and tenor of any recommendation is consistent with the duties established by the Code of Judicial Conduct including a duty to act in a manner that promotes public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judicial system. See IJEC Opinion No. 93-9.