Ethics

I'm reading wth cosiderable pleasure Noah Feldman's Scorpions, which focuses principally oh Black, Douglas, Jackson, and Frankfurter.  Feldman's treatment of the Black-Jackson feud over a recusal issue is the most detailed and interesting that I've seen.  It confirms one of my principal objections to suggestions that the entire Supreme Court determine recusal issues on the Court.   That is, the members of the Court are forced into a close working relationship, and whatever degree of collegiality that can be maintained is important.  Any vote by a justice that says, in effect, that another justice has acted unethically by not voluntarily recusing him- or herself is likely to impair collegiality.  Also, for that reason, justices are likely to be reluctant to vote to recuse a colleague who prefers not to recuse him/herself.

In addition, there are members of the Court (e.g., Scalia and Breyer) who are openly contemptuous of statutory recusal requirements.  This suggests that votes by the whole Court could make some bad law on recusal.