On Friday, August 16, 2024, Reuters reported that former U.S. bankruptcy judge David Jones was ordered to attend ethics training by Chief Bankruptcy Judge Eduardo Rodriguez. The sanction was due to an off-the-record interview that Jones had conducted with members of the Jackson Walker law firm in July.
In his ruling, Judge Rodriguez said that Jones’ interview with the law firm violated the judicial policy against current and former judges testifying about official acts without authorization. Rodriguez found that Jones had acted in bad faith by arguing his actions did not break the rules. As Jones was aware of the policy, Rodriguez called his legal defenses “contrived.” He mandated Jones to complete 7.5 hours of ethics training.
The sanction comes after revelations last year that Jones had been in a long-term undisclosed relationship with Liz Freeman, a former partner at Jackson Walker. This was significant as the law firm had routinely filed bankruptcy cases that came before Jones’ court. While admonishing the involved lawyers, Rodriguez did not take further action against Jackson Walker, their outside counsel, or Jones’ own attorney.
Though the content of Jones’ July interview has not been publicly disclosed, the judicial policy on testimony only applies to current and former judiciary staff, not external parties. However, Rodriguez said the attorneys still should have known not to participate in an unauthorized discussion with Jones. He called their actions “legally dubious” and likened it to “playing with fire.”
In a separate matter, the Office of the U.S. Trustee is seeking to recover millions in legal fees approved by Jones in 33 bankruptcy cases handled by Jackson Walker. Rodriguez will oversee that dispute as well. In addition to ethics training, he prohibited Jones from providing any testimony without court approval going forward.
Source: Reuters
