Background: This article is devoted to the study of the disciplinary liability of judges for violations of ethical norms, which constitutes an integral part of the institute of legal responsibility of judges. It highlights the relationship between the violation of ethical norms by a judge and the negative consequences that occur as a result. 

Based on a detailed analysis of the current practice of bringing judges to disciplinary responsibility for violating ethical norms, the article identifies characteristic features of the wording in the relevant decisions and addresses their specific shortcomings.

The conclusions drawn can contribute to the improvement of both the normative provisions regulating this issue and their effective law enforcement in disciplinary proceedings. Given that this issue is of national interest, the findings may also support the development of a more robust system for holding judges accountable. 

Methods: The study employed analytical, normative and comparative methods. The analytical method was used to analyse the practice of bringing judges to disciplinary responsibility for violating ethical norms and related judicial cases. The normative method allowed for a review of the legal framework and provisions that regulate the grounds for disciplining judges for violations of ethical norms. Finally, with the help of the comparative method, the authors compared the practical aspects of initiating the procedure for initiating disciplinary proceedings by different groups of subjects authorised to do so, as well as contrasted the language used in decisions regarding the application of disciplinary measures on judges. 

Results and Conclusions: The article demonstrates that in the issue of holding judges accountable for violations of judicial ethics, the normative framework plays a crucial role in response to new social challenges. However, the practical application (disciplinary and judicial) holds special and decisive importance. Examples of these are considered in detail, and conclusions are drawn regarding the regularities in the use of grounds for judicial responsibility in general formulations. In terms of the nature of the misconduct and the damage caused to the status of the judge and the authority of justice, the fact of public disclosure of the circumstances surrounding the judge’s offence is of great importance. Based on a systematic analysis of legislation and disciplinary cases, several features of bringing a judge to justice for violation of ethical norms have been allocated.

Authors information

Yurii Prytyka*

Dr. Sc. (Law), Prof., Head of Civil Procedure Department of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv,Vice President of the International Commercial Arbitration Court (ICAC), Kyiv, Ukraine 

yurii.prytyka@knu.ua

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5992-1144

Corresponding author, responsible for conceptualization, formal analysis, funding acquisition, methodology and writing – original draft.

Competing interests: Prof. Prytyka serves on the the Advisory Board of AJEE, thus, he was not involved in decision-making, and this article underwent the full process of peer review and editing. To avoid potential conflict or the perception of bias, the final decisions for the publication of this note were handled by other editors, including choice of peer reviewers.

Maryna Stavniichuk

Cand. of Legal Sciences, Vice-president of the World Congress of Ukrainian Lawyers, Kyiv, Ukraine

Member of the European Commission "For Democracy through Law" (Venice Commission) (2009 -  2013)

stav.marina@gmail.com

https://orcid.org/0009-0007-8273-1323

Co-author, responsible for methodology and writing – review & editing.

Competing interests: No competing interests were disclosed.

Disclaimer: The authors declare that their opinions and views expressed in this manuscript are free of any impact of any organizations.

Additional information

This article was prepared as part of the scientific project ‘Justice in the context of sustainable development’ Project No. 22BF042-01 (2022–2024).