Canon 5: A Federal Public Defender Employee Should Regulate Extra-official Activities to Minimize the Risk of Conflict with Official Duties

A. Avocational Activities A defender employee may write, lecture, teach, and speak on subjects unrelated to the profession, and may engage in the arts, sports, and other social and recreational activities, if such avocational activities do not detract from the dignity of the office, interfere with the performance of official duties, or adversely reflect on the public defender’s role as an advocate. A defender employee may solicit funds for avocational activities, subject to the limitations set forth in canon 4B.

B. Civic and Charitable Activities A defender employee may participate in civic and charitable activities that do not detract from the dignity of the office, interfere with the performance of official duties, or adversely reflect on the public defender’s role as an advocate. A defender employee may serve as an officer, director, trustee or advisor of an educational, religious, charitable, fraternal, or civic organization, and may solicit funds for any such organization subject to the limitations set forth in canon 4B.

C. Financial Activities

(1) A defender employee should refrain from financial and business dealings that tend to detract from the dignity of the office or interfere with the performance of official duties.

(2) A defender employee should not solicit or accept a gift from anyone seeking official action from or doing business with the federal public defender office, or from anyone whose interests may be substantially affected by the performance or nonperformance of official duties; except that a defender employee may accept a gift as permitted by the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 and the Judicial Conference regulations thereunder. A defender employee should endeavor to prevent a member of a defender employee’s family residing in the household from soliciting or accepting any such gift except to the extent that a defender employee would be permitted to do so by the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 and the Judicial Conference regulations thereunder.

Note: See 5 U.S.C. § 7353 (gifts to federal employees). See also 5 U.S.C. § 7342 (foreign gifts); 5 U.S.C. § 7351 (gifts to superiors).

(3) A defender employee should report the value of gifts to the extent a report is required by the Ethics Reform Act, other applicable law, or the Judicial Conference of the United States.

Note: See 5 U.S.C. §§ 13101–13111 (financial disclosure provisions)

D. Practice of Law A defender employee should not engage in the private practice of law. Notwithstanding this prohibition, a defender employee may act pro se and may, without compensation, give legal advice to and draft or review documents for a member of the defender employee’s family, so long as such work does not present an appearance of impropriety and does not interfere with the defender employee’s primary responsibility to the defender office.

Note: See 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(g)(2)(A) (prohibiting public defenders from engaging in the private practice of law). See also 18 U.S.C. § 203 (representation in matters involving the United States); 18 U.S.C. § 205 (claims against the United States).