Honoring The Deceased

A judge may sign a letter of support and speak publicly to advocate naming a new courthouse after a deceased lawyer.

May a judge sign a letter of support and speak publicly to advocate naming a new courthouse after a deceased lawyer.

ANSWER:  Yes.

A new civil courthouse was recently constructed in a Florida county.  The County Commission is charged with naming this new building.  A local bar association has published a letter, signed by several public figures and community leaders, advocating that the courthouse be named after a prominent lawyer who is now deceased (we will call him “Public Person A”).  An inquiring judge wishes to know whether they can sign this letter of support to advocate naming the new courthouse after Public Person A.  They also wish to appear before the County Commission to speak publicly in favor of naming the courthouse in honor of Public Person A.  The inquiring judge informs us that other persons in the legal system are advocating naming the courthouse after a different public person, also deceased (“Public Person B”).   

We begin with the pertinent judicial canon addressing circumstances such as these, Fla. Code Jud. Conduct, Canon 5(C)(1), which provides, in pertinent part: “A judge shall not appear at a public hearing before, or otherwise consult with, an executive or legislative body or official except on matters concerning the law, the legal system or the administration of justice. . . .”   Construing this canon, this Committee has observed that judicial officers are generally prohibited “from affixing their signatures on petitions other than those that relate to the improvement of the law, the legal system or the administration of justice.”  Fla. JEAC Op. 1998-07.  The question, then, is whether advocating for the name of a courthouse—whether verbally or in writing—could be construed as a “matter[] concerning the law, the legal system, or the administration of justice.”  We believe that it is.

Naming a public building after an individual is not only an extraordinary honor for that person’s legacy, it also reflects an expression of the values and characteristics that the public building, so named, aspires to emblemize.  Courthouses are no exception.  Indeed, courthouses throughout our State bear the names of a variety of public figures, such as the Paul G. Rogers Federal Building and Courthouse in West Palm Beach (named after a former U.S. Congressman), the George Edgecomb Courthouse in Tampa (named after Hillsborough County’s first African-American county judge), and the M.C. Blanchard Judicial Building in Pensacola (named after a former chief judge in Escambia County).  Often, a courthouse named for a public figure will display a plaque or signage in a prominent place that explains that individual’s biography, accomplishments, and contributions to the justice system.

In Fla. JEAC Op. 1995-43, we opined that a judge could support renaming a street for a deceased judge because renaming the street was found to be “an activity that will raise awareness of the law, the legal system, and the administration of justice.”  We further stated that the inquiring judge could appear before the county commission to state their support for such a measure. If naming a street after a member of the judiciary would “raise awareness of the law, the legal system, and the administration of justice,” certainly naming a courthouse after a public figure would, as well.  Accordingly, we conclude that advocating for the name of a courthouse fits squarely within Canon 5(C)(1).

Of course, the judge should remain mindful that any advocacy does not interfere with the performance of any judicial duties or cast doubt on the judge’s impartiality. See Fla. Code Jud. Conduct, Canon 5(A).  Moreover, the judge must take care when advocating for the name of this courthouse not to lend the prestige of the judge’s judicial office to any expressions of support.  With those caveats, we answer the judge’s inquiry in the affirmative.  The opinion was unanimously approved by the committee with three members recused.