If a party believes that the judge assigned to their case is some how biased the party can raise the issue in a motion to recuse. However, the the motion to recuse will be reviewed by the judge who is thought to have exhibited bias. As a result, very few motions to recuse are granted and many more are never filed for fear of retaliation. The standard of review for a Motion to Recuse is an objective one. A party need not show that the judge was actually biased. They must only show from the totality of the circumstances that a reasonable person, knowing those circumstances, would believe that the judge may have been biased. The standard is whether there was an appearance of impropriety or bias, not actual bias.
It is not fair to the litigant or the judge to rely on the questioned judge to make the decision of whether he can proceed without bias. It seems more efficient and more reliable to ask a third party to review the facts and objectively determine whether an appearance of impropriety exists. Review by a third party judge would better serve all of the parties and most importantly justice. A simple solution that puts justice first and makes sure we get it right.
It is not fair to the litigant or the judge to rely on the questioned judge to make the decision of whether he can proceed without bias. It seems more efficient and more reliable to ask a third party to review the facts and objectively determine whether an appearance of impropriety exists. Review by a third party judge would better serve all of the parties and most importantly justice. A simple solution that puts justice first and makes sure we get it right.
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