The US Supreme Court has announced its first formal code of conduct governing the ethical behaviour of its nine justices, bowing to months of outside pressure over revelations of undisclosed luxury trips and hobnobbing with wealthy benefactors.
The code drew mixed reviews, with some critics noting the apparent absence of any enforcement mechanism.
It was adopted after a series of media reports detailing ethics questions surrounding some Supreme Court members, in particular conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, even as Senate Democrats pursued long-shot legislation to mandate an ethics code for the nation's top judicial body.
The nine-page document codifies that justices should not let outside relationships influence their official conduct or judgment, spells out restrictions on their participation in fundraising and reiterates limits on accepting gifts.
It also states that justices should not "to any substantial degree" use judicial resources or staff for non-official activities.
A commentary released with the code on Monday said justices who were weighing a speaking engagement should "consider whether doing so would create an appearance of impropriety in the minds of reasonable members of the public".
Unlike other members of the federal judiciary, the Supreme Court's life-tenured justices have long acted with no binding ethics code.
That absence, the court said, had led some to believe the justices "regard themselves as unrestricted by any ethics rules", and this code both dispelled this misunderstanding and largely codified principles that had long governed justices' conduct.
The court has been buffeted for months by revelations regarding justices over undisclosed trips on private jets, luxury holidays, real estate and recreational vehicle deals, and more.
Senator Dick Durbin, who chairs the Democratic-led Senate judiciary committee, called the code a "step in the right direction" but held open the possibility of further legislative efforts if the code fell short.
Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, called the code an important first step but the lack of enforcement mechanisms was a "glaring omission".
The ethics drumbeat added pressure to a court already facing declining public approval following major rulings in its past two terms powered by its 6-3 conservative majority, including ending its recognition of a constitutional right to abortion.
News outlet ProPublica detailed luxury trips by Thomas that were provided by Texas businessman Harlan Crow as well as real estate transactions involving the justice and the billionaire Republican donor.
A report by Senate Democrats found Thomas apparently failed to repay at least a "significant portion" of a $US267,000 ($A418,000) loan from longtime friend Anthony Welters to buy a luxury motor coach.
ProPublica also detailed an undisclosed 2008 flight that conservative Justice Samuel Alito took on a private jet provided by billionaire hedge fund founder Paul Singer for a luxury fishing trip in Alaska.
Other media reports have detailed a real estate transaction involving conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch and a law firm CEO, as well as aides promoting sales of books by liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
Australian Associated Press
