Federal Judicial Code of Conduct

Article 3: Definitions

In this Regulation, the following terms have the meanings listed below unless the context indicates
otherwise:

8) "Diligence" means careful and persistent work or effort

16) “Impartiality” means the duty to decide cases based upon applicable law and facts without improper
influence or interference, or manifestations of bias.

18) "Incompetency and inefficiency" mean judge’s failure to display the knowledge, skill, mental
capacity and/or physical capacity required of a judge when performing judicial functions such resulting in
unacceptable performance.

19) “Independence” means the institutional freedom from improper influence and interference from any
source whatsoever, including from political or governmental sources, and the duty of the judicial
institution to act independently, without such influence or interference, as well as a judge’s obligation to
exercise judicial functions with full independence and only according to law.

20) “Integrity” means the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles.

22) “Judge” means a judge of the Ethiopian federal courts including a president of a court or a deputy
president of a court.

23) “Judicial function” means any and all acts that are related to the performance of judicial duties.

24) “Misconduct” means unacceptable or improper behavior as described in these regulations.

Article 6: Independence

1) Judges shall perform their judicial functions independently and without influence or interference from
any source whatsoever.

2) Judges shall not participate in any activity that is likely to interfere with their judicial functions or that
may affect confidence in their independence or that may reduce respect for their judicial office.

3) Judges shall not hold membership in any political party while in active judicial service and shall not
participate in any political parties Socio economic reinforcement programs. Judges shall not deliver a
speech that represents the interests of a particular political party or any other organization that advocates
discriminatory or biased points of view. Judges shall not campaign for election to a political office.

Article 7: Impartiality

1) Judges shall exercise their judicial functions impartially and also ensure that their judicial actions
reflect an appearance of impartiality.

2) Judges shall respect the rights of every party equally and fairly.

3) Judges shall not establish or maintain an economic or social interest that would harm the judicial
institution or their judicial service, including interests that reflect poorly on their credibility, affect their
dignity or raise questions about their impartiality. Judges shall not engage themselves in any transaction
or trade system that may harm the judicial institution or would affect their judicial service, affect their
credibility, degrade their dignity or raise questions about their impartiality.

8) Judges shall not be a member of an association that was established on the basis of ethnicity, language,
cultural, religious, gender, age, and family, social, economic or political status for the purposes of
discrimination or to promote prejudice on any grounds.

9) Judges shall avoid any conflict of interest and any situation that might reasonably be perceived as
giving the appearance of a conflict of interest.

10) Judges shall disqualify themselves from a case under the following circumstances on conflictof-
interest grounds:

a. When they have personal bias or prejudice against a party or if some personal relationship or other
reason would cause them to favor a party;

b. When they have a medical, business or social relationship with any participant in the legal proceedings;

c. When they have prior personal knowledge of the facts and evidence of legal proceeding;

d. When in private practice they served as a lawyer in the matter in controversy or they have been a
material witness concerning the matter in controversy;

e. If they have participated as an adviser, legal counsel or material witness at the government office they
previously served at, in particular, concerning the ongoing preceding or expressed an opinion regarding
the merits of the particular case in controversy;

f. If a judge or his/her spouse or their children are involved in the case or are known to be a financial
beneficiary or could have another benefit or interest that could be affected by the outcome of the
preceding. Judges shall have up-to-date knowledge about their personal financial interests and assets, and
make a reasonable effort to inform themselves about the personal financial interests of their spouses and
children;

g. The judge or his/her spouse or a person within the second-degree of relationship to either of them, or
the spouse of such a person; (i) is a party to the proceeding or is an manager, director or trustees of a
party; (ii) is acting as a lawyer in the proceeding; or, (iii) is known by the judge to have an interest that
could be affected by the outcome of the proceeding; or, is, to the judge’s presumption or knowledge likely
to be a material witness in the proceeding;

Article 8: Integrity

1) Judges discharge their judicial functions in accordance with the standards required by the Judiciary and
the Code of Conduct with strong moral principles, credibility and integrity. In addition to acts of
dishonesty set forth in this Code, fraud, falsification of documents, perjury, illegal trade, unethical,
immoral, and known acts are also included under dishonesty.

2) Judges without any sufficient reason shall neither ask nor accept any gift, loan, benefit, special benefit
or any other reward that may directly or indirectly influence their function as a judge.

3) Judges shall not use their judicial authority as a means of enriching themselves or ensuring that another
third party receives an undue or unjustified advantage.

4) Judges shall not use or allow the use of state property by a third party for unauthorized purposes.
5) Judges may seek permission from the president of the court they serve to receive payments if it is
perceived that the judge’s act of receiving money or any other income in relation to his teaching service at
educational institutions will neither affect the function nor the dignity of the judiciary.

6) Judges shall protect, serve and treat other judges, litigants, lawyers, persons involved in litigation,
court sponsors and others with due respect and dignity.

7) Judges shall not make any distinctions between people based on their ethnicity, language, culture,
religion, sex, age, social interaction, disability, economics, or political status.

8) Judges shall not in any way use their judicial authority inappropriately.

9) Judges shall not engage themselves in any kind of harassment including sexual harassment,
intimidation, and physical violence. For example, judges in their judicial function with litigants, lawyers
and court sponsors, shall not engage or attempt to engage in any kind of activity that may lead or push to
sexual activity.

10) Judges’ relationship with other judges shall always be grounded on professional partnerships and
fellowship.

11) Judges shall always protect the name and reputation of Ethiopian federal courts.

12) Judges shall not drink excessive alcohol or be users of illegal drugs or be seen in their workplace
being under the influence of alcohol or any other illegal drugs. Judges shall not chew khat in their
workplace.

13) Judges shall report violations of the code of conduct by another judge to the president of the court or
to the Judicial Administration Council when the violator is the president.

14) As seen in the Judge's Administrative Council Act, in cases where prior permission have not been
given ,any judge who is charged with or arrested for a criminal offence except in cases where caught red
handed shall within 24hrs of his/her knowing of the charge or arrest inform the president of the court, if
the arrest or charge was made against the president he/she shall inform the vice president and in cases
where the charge or arrest has been made against both the president and vice president, they should
inform the judges administration council. The 10 serious or simple breach of the code of ethics by a judge
shall be a basis for a disciplinary action that is proportional to it.

Article 10: Diligence

1) Judges have a duty to diligently fulfill their judicial duties at the level required by the judiciary,
including meeting standards for implementation, respecting employment policies, and complying with the
employment guidelines set by the presidents of the Federal Judicial Administration Council and/or the
courts where they work. It is also obligated to apply the instructions of a call-up judge to facilitate the
judiciary's work in accordance with the rules and guidelines set by the Federal Judicial Administration
Conference.

2) Notwithstanding sub-1 of this article, judges do not act in a way that interferes with or affects the
judicial process, even if such acts are directed at them by their bosses or from another body.

3) Judges must be punctual in their work and set an example for others in this regard. Judges must inform
or take leave from their nearest deputies when they are late, in or out of business hours. Or if they want to
do certain judicial work elsewhere, or in such cases, they must first disclose or obtain permission from
their closest deputies. Judges cannot be absent from their post without leave, and in case of an emergency,
they should inform their closest deputies about the issue as soon as possible with good cause.

4) Judges shall be aware of, protect, and be involved in acts to improve the measures taken by the
presidents of the courts in which judges work (even at the direction of the council) to improve and
develop their personal characteristics. They shall also be involved in standardized training 11 offered by
the courts in which they operate, as not being involved in scheduled training is considered a violation of
the code of conduct.

5) When judges are on duty, they have a duty to wear work clothes that are appropriate for the judiciary,
accepted by the majority, and maintain their rank. They also have a duty to properly maintain their
personal hygiene. Judges must wear coats when they are in court. The details shall be implemented
according to the judges’ protocol and code of conduct.

6) Judges shall examine each case assigned to them thoroughly and without undue delay, they shall make
an effective and expeditious decision in accordance with the requirements and timeframes of the case
management guidelines. Judges shall not show gross negligence in the performance of their duties. When
presiding over proceedings and handling cases, judges shall perform their duties in an orderly and
organized manner, so as to avoid inconvenience to the majority of clients, lawyers and parties summoned.
Unless the interest of justice requires otherwise, judges must set a date and time for hearing cases; when
this is not possible, the judges shall conduct sessions by starting from calling cases that are likely not to
take much time and then move on to the more time-consuming cases. Unless otherwise specified in the
constantly amending Case Management Guideline or the interest of justice doesn’t require otherwise;
judges shall when handling cases, proceed in the following order

a. Adjournment of cases that a judge is unable investigate cases due to lack of time or other circumstances
on that day

b. Through the Registrar's Office, receiving unsolicited responses and receiving appointment requests;

c. Pre-hearing of prior judgments, decisions, decrees and orders

d. Hearing the charges and witnesses.

7) Judges, when performing their judicial duties, shall select the appropriate procedural law carefully and
with due diligence will conduct the proceedings. Ignorance of the law of procedure cannot be a defense
against a disciplinary complaint instituted against a judge.

8) Judges to make a decision shall carefully and with due diligence choose the basic (main) substantive
laws that are relevant and applicable to the case. A judge charged with a violation of the Code of Conduct
cannot bring his ignorance of substantive laws as a defense.

9) Judges, when conducting a trial, shall carefully and with due diligence identify facts appropriate for the
determination of the case. In this regard, the judge is found to be in breach of the Code of Conduct if he
fails to use all the evidence that was accepted during trial without sufficient and valid reason.

10) Judges shall give analysis of the decision in a manner that shows the connection of relevant facts of
the case with the relevant law, giving a convincing decision reflecting the outcome and fairness of the
process.

11) When judges pass punishment on a person convicted of a crime, judges shall not act without
examining the nature, commission of the crime and circumstances of the commission of the crime and
shall impose a sentence that is consistent with the sentencing principles and applicable law in
consideration of those factors.

12) At hearings where more than one judge presides over a case, a judge or Judges may take a different
position than the majority, but they must state their position on the basis of logical and realistic reasons
for disagreeing with each other without criticizing the other judges personally. Judges should respect their
colleagues and perform their duties in a harmonious, cooperative, and respectful way with their
colleagues.

13) Judges should always perform their duties in a manner that ensures the effectiveness of the Ethiopian
federal courts. Unless for a medical condition that prevents from working in an assigned area or other
compelling family problems, a judge shall not object to a transfer to another post within the federal
judicial institution, meaning a transfer to another court in Addis Ababa or Dire Dawa or to delegated
regions in accordance with Article 78 (2) in the future or to federal courts of the same rank organized by
the regions as per Proclamation 322/95, or to another bench within the same court where the judge is
currently serving.

14) Judges must ensure the support-staff are performing their duties in an appropriate and ethical manner,
respecting the rights of others, and performing their duties without prejudice or injustice. Judges, in
accordance with their work procedures and when files are expected to be presented to them, but, the
support-staffs intentionally delaying the scheduled files in order to cause unsettlement, or with intentional
or grave negligence failing to bring files in due time so that to create unnecessary adjournments, who are
below performances, who violates work procedures, who exhibited negligence on their duties, who utilize
work hours for personal benefits; judges should then, monitor and admonition or based on code of
conduct and disciplinary litigation procedures transfer the occurrences to the concerned registrar or to the
concerned work division, for the necessary correctional measurements.

15) Judges shall not engage in acts that are prohibited by the Federal Code of Conduct using social media.
“Use of social media” means judges writing comments and, or posting images or videos or judges liking
comments or images or videos or sharing other people’s posts of the same messages with others. He will
not be held liable if he claims to have made a mistake.

Article 12: Right to Freedom of Expression and Association.

1) Judges may exercise their right to freedom of expression and association in a manner that does not
infringe on their independence and impartiality of the judiciary. However, judges are obliged to comply
with the requirements set out in Article 37 of the Amended Judicial Council Proclamation.

2) Judges have the right to participate in public forums, meetings, and educational seminars, including
academic publications on legal matters, debates on judicial or administrative matters. However, they do
not comment on unresolved issues, they have a duty to ensure that their comments do not degrade the
views of another judge or court official, and that they refrain from commenting on the reputation and
integrity of Ethiopian federal courts.

3) When exercising their right to freedom of expression, judges should refrain from making statements or
comments that discredit the Ethiopian Federal Courts or raise serious doubts about their impartiality.

4) Judges must ask and obtain written permission from the President of the Court in which he/she works
before making any statement to the Ethiopian Federal Courts and related media outlets. With the
permission of the President, the judges can comment to the media: However, they cannot criticize any
court decision; Apart from the explicit discrepancies in the decision making process, they do not address
any differences arising from preexisting legal disputes regarding an issue; they do not take sides in court
cases and must adhere to the principles of the judiciary.
5) A judge acting on behalf of the Judges association shall not be required to seek the consent of the
President of the Court in which he is acting; provided, however, that it shall comply with the other
conditions set forth in sub-article 4 of this Article.

Article 15: Incompetence and Ineffectiveness

1) Judges may be dismissed from their position on grounds of physical and psychological preparedness
required by the position, and when professional training given to improve their capacity has failed or
would likely fail, and when their knowledge, skill and physical/psychological health falls below the
standard levels required to be bestowed to a given judge.

2) This provision shall not be applied to judges with disabilities who are discharging their judicial
functions properly.

3) Judges may be dismissed from their judicial positions, despite having completed professional training
to improve their capacities, their performance is consistently below the standard required to be fulfilled
by a judge.

4) Judges may permanently or temporarily resign from the position they are assuming if they are to suffer
permanent and/or temporary illness based on the judges’ licensing written directives put through by the
conference.

5) Given that’s the case and if disciplinary complaints are filed on them repeatedly on similar cases, if
they don’t have records of weak performance that are unrelated to prior health problems, and/or if they
are not deemed permanently unqualified or unable to carry out their tasks on the due medical review, their
permanent and/or temporary resignation request will not be put through.

6) Judge who is subject to an incompetency inquiry based on persistent poor performance grounds shall
be evaluated using objective performance standards that are applied to all similarly situated judges.

7) Judges charged with violating the Code of Conduct due to incompetence or ineffectiveness have the
same rights as judges charged with other matters based on the code of conduct.

Article 16: Misconduct of Serious Nature

Serious violations of the Code of Conduct are acts that are incompatible with official functions of the
Judiciary and are likely to cause serious harm to the proper administration of justice in the Ethiopian
Federal Courts or to the internal functioning of the courts, as specified in Appendix "A", including the
following:

1) Breaching duty of confidentiality of facts or information known acquired in the course of judicial
duties on a matter that is under consideration by the court and when such disclosure is prejudicial to the
judicial proceedings or to any person;

2) Concealing or failing to disclose or disclose information that prohibits a judge from being appointed as
a judge.

3) Abuse of judicial office in order to obtain favorable treatment from any official, appointee or
professional; being found guilty of a crime that reflects adversely on the integrity and honesty of the
judge; receiving a bribe and working as a mediator or engaging in conduct involving harassment, abuse of
authority, dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation, or,
4) When acting as a rapporteur for a multiple-judge panel, misrepresenting the fact and/or the law as to
cause as a result in the case is not justified by the fact or the law despite the fact that all members of a
judicial panel are responsible for the correctness of a decision.

Article 17: Misconduct of Less Serious Nature

Misconduct of a less serious conduct that causes or is likely to cause harm to the proper administration of
justice before the Ethiopian Federal Courts or the proper internal functioning of the courts, as reflected in
appendix “a,” including the following

1) Unduly attempting to influence another judge, or the president of the court or the registrar in the
exercise of their function.

2) Failure to answer or ignore the repeated requests of the President of the Court on the basis of the
authority vested in him.

3) Release to the media and journalists any matters pertaining to the federal courts without the consent of
the President of the President of the Court.

4) Destroying or performing actions that are likely to cause harm to the reputation of the Ethiopian
Federal Courts.