Update on Possible Impeachment of U.S. District Judge for Bankruptcy Fraud

There has been a new development in the case of a U.S. District Judge facing possible impeachment based in part upon his conduct as a Chapter 13 debtor. On September 10, 2008, The Judicial Council of the Fifth Circuit issued an Order and Public Reprimand in Docket No. 07-05-351-0085, In re Complaint of Judicial Misconduct Against Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr. under the Judicial Conduct and Disability Act of 1980. The Order publicly reprimands the Judge for conduct including perjury and violation of ethical canons, orders that no new cases be assigned to him for two years or until Congress completes impeachment proceedings and suspends his authorization to employ staff.

I previously wrote about this case last January after the Fifth Circuit recommended that Judge Porteous be referred for possible impeachment proceedings. Now the Judicial Conference of the United States has accepted the Report and Recommendation from the Judicial Conference fo the Fifth Circuit.

While the Order details substantial misconduct, the following item pertains to his personal bankruptcy case.

Judge Porteous repeatedly committed perjury by signing false statements under oath in a personal bankruptcy proceeding in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 152(1)-(3), 1621 as well as Canons 1 and 2A of the Code of Conduct for United States Judges. This perjury allowed him to obtain a discharge of his debts while continuing his lifestyle at the expense of his creditors. His systematic disregard of the Bankruptcy Court's orders also implicates 11 U.S.C. Sec. 521(a)(3) and 18 U.S.C. Sec. 401(1).

Order and Public Reprimand, pp. 2-3.

While a public reprimand and suspension from receiving new cases may sound mild, the Circuit stressed that it was taking the maximum action available to it.

In issuing this Order and Public Reprimand and executing the actions contained herein, the Council is taking the maximum disciplinary steps allowed by law against Judge Porteous. Any further action to remove Judge Porteous from office and the emoluments thereof is the responsibility of Congress.

Order and Public Reprimand, p. 5.

The House Judiciary Committee has formed a task force to investigate the possible impeachment of Judge Porteous.

Fifth Circuit Recommends Impeachment of Federal Judge Based on Bankruptcy Misconduct

On December 20, 2007, the Judicial Council of the Fifth Circuit entered a Memorandum Order and Certification in which it certified to the Judicial Conference of the United States its determination that U.S. District Judge G. Thomas Porteous had engaged in conduct which might constitute grounds for impeachment. In re: Complaint of Judicial Misconduct against United States District Judge G. Thomas Porteous, Jr., under the Judicial Conduct and Disability Act of 1980, Docket No. 07-05-351-0085. One of the grounds stated for possible impeachment was the Judge's misconduct while he was a Chapter 13 debtor.

Judge Porteous was appointed to the U.S. District Court bench in New Orleans in 1994. On March 28, 2001, he filed a chapter 13 bankruptcy petition in the Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. The Bankruptcy Judges for the Eastern District recused themselves on the basis that they were a unit of the District Court of which Judge Porteous was a judge. The Judicial Council of the Fifth Circuit appointed Bankruptcy Judge William Greendyke to hear the case. Judge Porteous confirmed a plan and ultimately received a discharge on July 22, 2004.

The Judicial Council made the following findings about the Judge's bankruptcy case:

"Judge Porteous filed numerous false statements under oath during his and his wife's Chapter 13 bankruptcy, including filing the petiiton under a false name; concealing assets of the bankruptcy estate; failing to identify gambling losses; and failing to list all creditors. Judge Porteous additionally violated bankruptcy court orders forbidding him from incurring debt during the course of the Chapter 13 cse without approval of the trustee or bankruptcy judge, in that he continued regularly to incur short-term extensions of credit from various casinos. Judge Porteous additionally made unauthorized and undisclosed payments to preferred creditors after the commencement of the bankruptcy case."

Memorandum Order, p. 3.

In addition to the bankruptcy grounds stated, the Judicial Council found that the Judge had engaged in deceptive conduct concerning a debt he owed to Regions Bank prior to bankruptcy, that he received gifts and things of value from attorneys who had cases pending before him and that he failed to report the gifts on his financial disclosures.

According to an article in The New Orleans Times-Picayune, there were 7,462 complaints filed against federal judges in the decade ending September 30, 2006. Out of those complaints, eight required action by a judicial council and none was referred to the Judicial Conference for possible impeachment. Meghan Gordon, "Move to impeach federal judge a rarity," The Times-Picayune, December 23, 2007. Since the current law was passed in 1981, three federal judges have been removed from office through impeachment, all of them during the 1980s.

From this point, the Judicial Conference of the United States will review the case and will make a recommendation to the House of Representatives. If the House of Representatives votes for impeachment, there will be a trial before the Senate.