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3. DEFINITIONS
- “Appropriate authority” means the authority with responsibility
for initiating disciplinary proceedings with respect to the violation
to be reported.
- “De minimis” means an insignificant interest that could
not raise a reasonable question as to a judge’s impartiality.
- “Code” means the code of judicial conduct of the office
of administrative hearings, state of North Dakota.
- “Economic interest” means ownership of more than de minimis
legal or equitable interest, or a relationship as officer, director,
advisor, or other active participant in the affairs of a party, except
that:
- ownership of an interest in a mutual or common investment fund that
holds securities is not an economic interest in such securities unless
the judge participates in the management of the fund or a proceeding
pending or impending before the judge could substantially affect the
value of the interest;
- service by a judge as an officer, director, advisor, or other active
participant in an educational, religious, charitable, fraternal, or
civic organization, or service by a judge’s spouse, parent,
or child as an officer, director, advisor, or other active participant
in any such organization does not create an economic interest in securities
held by that organization;
- a deposit in a financial institution, the proprietary interest of
a policy holder in a mutual insurance company, of a depositor in a
mutual savings association or of a member in a credit union, or a
similar proprietary interest, is not an economic interest in the organization
unless a proceeding pending or impending before the judge could substantially
affect the value of the interest;
- ownership of government securities is not an economic interest in
the issuer unless a proceeding pending or impending before the judge
could substantially affect the value of the securities.
- “Fiduciary” means such relationships as executor, administrator,
trustee, and guardian.
- “Judge” means administrative law judge. Although the terms
“judge” and “administrative law judge” are not
otherwise necessarily synonymous, for purposes of this code they are
synonymous. Similarly, the term “judicial” or “judiciary”
means, for the purpose of this code, belonging to or referring to the
office of an administrative law judge.
- “Knowingly,” “knowledge,” “known,”
or “knows” means actual knowledge of the fact in question.
A person’s knowledge may be inferred from facts and circumstances.
- “Law” means constitutional provisions, statutes, rules,
and decisional law.
- “May” means permissible discretion or, depending upon
the context, refers to action which is not covered by specific proscriptions.
- “Member of the judge’s family” or “family
member” means a spouse, child, grandchild, parent, grandparent,
or other relative or person with whom the judge maintains a close familial
relationship or who may reasonably appear to others to be a member of
the judge’s family.
- “Member of the judge’s family residing in the judge’s
household” means not only any relative of a judge by blood or
marriage, but also any person who is treated by the judge as a member
of the judge’s family, who resides in the judge’s home.
- “Nonpublic information” means information that, by law,
is not available to the public. Nonpublic information may include, but
is not limited to, information that is specifically made confidential
by statute or rule, or sealed by court or agency order, communicated
in camera to the administrative law judge, or otherwise not available
under any provision of N.D.C.C. ch. 44-04.
- “Require.” Any rule prescribing that an administrative
law judge “require” certain conduct of others is a rule
of reason. The use of the term “require” in this context
means an administrative law judge is to exercise reasonable discretion
and control over the conduct of those persons subject to the administrative
law judge’s direction and control.
- “Shall” or “shall not” means indication of
a binding obligation the violation of which can result in disciplinary
action.
- “Should” or “should not” is intended as hortatory
and as a statement of what is or is not appropriate conduct, but does
not mean indication of a binding rule under which a judge may be disciplined.
- “Third degree of relationship.” The following persons
are relatives within the third degree of relationship: great-grandparent,
grandparent, parent, uncle, aunt, brother, sister, child, grandchild,
great-grandchild, nephew, or niece.
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