Recusal motion leads to disciplinary referral – UPDATED

After a Fifth Court panel reversed a plaintiff’s judgment in a premises liability case, the plaintiff’s counsel filed a motion to recuse based on campaign contributions received by two of the Justices on the panel. That motion led to an uncommon en banc opinion by the Fifth Court, which found that the motion was untimely (as it was made after receiving an adverse ruling) and lacked merit:

“Whether favored by judges or not, Texas selects its judges by popular election and requires that they finance this process. It has done so for more than a century. Recognizing this reality, Texas courts have spoken definitively and clearly with respect to the effect of campaign contributions on recusal. The mere receipt of campaign funds, in and of itself, without an indication of communication or coordination of the handling of a case, is not a basis for recusal.”

The Court then referred the plaintiff’s counsel to the State Bar for potential disciplinary action, noting that had he “ended his motion with the complaint regarding the mere receipt of campaign contributions by two justices on the panel deciding the appeal, we would deny the motion without further comment,” but instead “he has taken his disappointment with the outcome of this case to an inappropriate level by attacking the integrity of this Court . . . .” AVPM Corp. v. Childers, No. 05-17-00372-CV (revised Oct. 9, 2018) (en banc).