NYS Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics – College honorarium: Opinion 22-156

Listen to this article

New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics

College honorarium

Mentor-in-residence program

Opinion 22-156

Background: A full-time judge, who is also a writer, asks if he may accept a $10,000 honorarium from a college to serve as a mentor-in-residence during an upcoming semester. He is expected to perform 40 hours of service over a four month period. He will work with faculty coordinator to create a schedule, participate in a kick-off event, quest lecture in selected courses, meetings with small groups of students and faculty based on topics determined by him and the faculty coordinator, and maintain office hours for mentoring meetings with students.

Opinion: The Committee concluded that a full-time judge may accept a $10,000 honorarium to serve as a mentor-in-residence where the duties of the mentor-in-residence over the course of a semester involve guest lecturing in selected courses, meeting with groups of students and faculty on assorted topics, and holding office hours for mentoring students and the college offers the same honorarium to any such mentors-in-residence. Whether these activities may take place during regularly scheduled court hours, with time charged to annual leave, is an administrative question to be determined by the appropriate administrative judge.