Kaine Statement on President Biden’s Proposed Supreme Court Ethics Reforms

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine released the following statement regarding President Joe Biden’s new proposed Supreme Court reforms, which would impose term limits of 18 years on justices and create an enforceable ethics code:

“I’m glad to see President Biden putting Supreme Court reform front and center. Most important item? A tough, enforceable and mandatory ethics standard for justices—not just a voluntary one. Enough with the secret sweetheart arrangements between justices and rich donors.”

Kaine—a former civil rights lawyer and legal ethics professor—has long supported efforts to uphold ethics rules for justices and judges. Kaine is a cosponsor of the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act, which would create a binding code of ethics and strengthen recusal standards and disclosure rules at the Supreme Court. He has also previously called on Chief Justice Roberts to launch an ethics investigation into Justice Clarence Thomas’s billionaire-funded luxury travel and other outstanding allegations of misconduct. He has also urged the Senate Appropriations Committee to appropriate funding to direct the Supreme Court to adopt enforceable ethics rules.

###