In 2003 the American Bar Association announced the appointment of the Joint Commission to Evaluate the Model Code of Judicial Conduct under the auspices of the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility and the ABA Standing Committee Judicial Independence. In 2005 after the Joint Commission had completed part of its work, OBA President William Grimm ask the Bench and Bar Committee to begin a study of the Oklahoma Code of Judicial Conduct.

The committee was charged with the responsibility of examining the Proposed ABA Code to determine if it should be recommended to the Oklahoma Supreme Court for adoption. In January 2006 the committee began monthly meetings to review the ABA drafts as they were being released. By summer 2006, the committee had completed part of its work and met with the executive board of the Oklahoma Judicial Conference to discuss the draft of the Code of Judicial Conduct. Then in late summer 2006, the ABA Joint Commission began making significant changes in its original draft.

The proposed code was changed from five canons to four canons. What had been Canon One and Two were combined into a new Canon One. Canon Five became Canon Four, and significant changes were made in this canon. Because of these ongoing changes, the Bench and Bar Committee stopped its work on the Proposed Oklahoma Code until the ABA completed its work. In February 2007, the American Bar Association approved the Model Code of Judicial Conduct, and the Bench and Bar Committee again started its review of the ABA Model Code. The committee met monthly and on occasion more often to consider the Proposed Oklahoma Code. Each section of the ABA Code was reviewed and compared to the existing Oklahoma Code. The prior years work was helpful because not all of the prior draft had been abandoned by the ABA Joint Commission.

In addition to examining the Model Code of Judicial Conduct, the committee also started work on proposed new rules for the enforcement of the code. It was ultimately decided that the best plan was to complete work on the proposed code and then submit the code to the Supreme Court through the Oklahoma Bar Association. When that task had been completed, then the committee would start work on the proposed enforcement procedures.

The Bench and Bar Committee has completed all of its work on the Proposed Oklahoma Code draft – except in the terminology section, where it will be necessary to identify where in the code each of these terms appears. That will be complete before the Proposed Code is submitted to the Supreme Court. The Bench and Bar Committee has asked the OBA to place this draft on its Web site so that the proposed code may be examined by judges and lawyers throughout the state.

The committee has scheduled a time for public comment from the time of the release of the code until Jan. 31, 2008. After that comment period ends, the committee will consider all comments and then prepare a final draft for submission to the Oklahoma Bar Association. If approved, the draft will be submitted to the Oklahoma Supreme Court for its consideration.