Lecture outline

1.    The course in judicial ethics OHT 1

Basic premise

• Magistrates exercise public power
• Implies that they have a responsibility to exercise that power with the greatest respect and adherence to ethical principles 
• Affects the public’s confidence and respect for the justice system 

Overall goal

• Facilitate understanding of the issues involved 
• Ability to assess situations critically 
• Apply what has been learnt 

2.    Objectives OHT 2

Increased knowledge

• Meaning of ethics 
• Ethical behaviour for magistrates 

Changed attitudes

• Developing self-awareness on personal values and their impact 
• Acknowledging dilemmas of ethical issues 
• Taking into account social context 
• Encouraging discussions of ethical issues amongst colleagues 

New skills 

• Decision-making guided by values and principles 
• Ability to identify ethical issues 
• Ability to give reasoned explanations for decisions 
• Ensuring that impartiality is never compromised 

3.    Judicial misconduct 

• Difficult to define 
• More difficult to detect 
• Different forms ranging from practices which are illegal to behaviour which may not be illegal but which is unfitting: more subtle as it concerns ethical principles and values 
• Cause for concern in SA: in 2003: 251 complaints to Magistrates Commission 

4.    Judicial Values OHT 3  

• Focus of international judicial community with SA participation: 
• Latimer House Principles and Guidelines 
• Limassol Conclusions 
• Bangalore Principles of Judicial Conduct 
• South African Code of Conduct for Magistrates 

5.    Ethics

• Should I lie on a job application to spare my children from being thrown in the street? 
• Should I ignore my boss’s hypocrisies to keep my position? 
• Can I accept a token of appreciation from a grateful defendant? 
• Requires a framework of principles that are reliable and a procedure for applying them to problems. 

What Is Ethics? 

• Principles that define behaviour as right, good and proper 
• Not always a single “moral” course of action 
• A means of evaluating and deciding among competing options 

What are Values? 

• Inner judgements that determine how a person actually behaves 
• Based on religious beliefs, cultural roots, family background, personal experiences, laws, organisational values, professional norms and political habits 
• Not universal 
• Determine how we will behave in certain situations 
• Values often conflict 
• Values we consistently rank higher than others are our core values, which define character and personality 

Ethics and Action 

• Ethics is about putting principles into action 
• Consistency between what we say we value and what our actions say we value is integrity 
• It is also about self-restraint: 
• Not doing what you have the power to do. An act isn’t proper simply because it is permissible or you can get away with it. 
• Not doing what you have the right to do. There is a big difference between what you have the right to do and what is right to do. 
• Not doing what you want to do. In the well-worn turn of phrase, an ethical person often chooses to do more than the law requires and less than the law allows. 

Why Be Ethical? 

• Inner benefit. Virtue is its own reward. 
• Personal advantage. It is prudent. 
• Approval: leads to self-esteem, admiration and respect 
• Religion Habit: upbringing or training 

6.    Contents of the course OHT 4A & 4B