CANON 5

SECTION 5. Judges shall require lawyers in proceedings before the court to refrain from
manifesting, by words or conduct, bias or prejudice based on irrelevant grounds, except
such as are legally relevant to an issue in proceedings and may be the subject of
legitimate advocacy.

- Judges should conduct proceedings in court with dignity and in a manner that
reflects the importance and seriousness of proceedings. They should maintain
order and proper decorum in the court.
- Since judges set the tone and environment of the court proceedings, they should
censure lawyers who use sexist language or inappropriate behavior in court.
- They should hold lawyers to the requirements of Rule 12.07 of the Code of
Professional Responsibility which provides that a lawyer shall not abuse,
browbeat or harass a witness nor needlessly inconvenience him.
- Judges have the duty to prevent lawyers from abusing witnesses with unfair
treatment.
- As courts are expected to ensure equality, any lawyer who makes an insensitive or
demeaning comment in court should be admonished.

People v. Bores

That the frightful experience of being questioned about rape committed against
children requires the highest degree of tact, patience and diplomacy. Thus,
excessive queries to a 6-year old child as to whether she remembered step-by-step
the sexual intercourse at the hands of the accused were unnecessary and
inappropriate.

CANON 6

SECTION 1. The judicial duties of a judge take precedence over all other activities.

Though a judge has a duty to not sit where disqualified, a judge has an equally
strong duty not to recuse himself when the circumstances do not require recusal.

AMERICAN STATUTE

Mandates that a judge sit in a case unless there is a reasonable question as to the
judges impartiality. Thus, a judge should not recuse himself simply to avoid
sitting on difficult or controversial case.