A conflict of interest that went to the US Supreme Court
Most of the time, civil law is incredibly boring unless you’ve got a dog in the show. But every now and then, a case comes along that even a non-lawyer can get excited about. The case of Caperton v. Massey is one such case. Via Slate:
The facts of Caperton v. Massey are startling, to put it mildly. In 1998, Hugh Caperton filed a lawsuit against Massey Coal in state court in West Virginia over a business deal gone sour. The jury sided with Caperton, and Massey Coal was ordered to pay $50 million in damages. Massey Coal appealed the verdict at the same time that the campaign for seats on the West Virginia Supreme Court was heating up. Don Blankenship, the CEO of Massey Coal, donated $3 million to support Brent Benjamin’s bid for election to the high court ("one dollar for every West Virginian," Blankenship boasted—and it’s more like $1.66). Blankenship’s contribution amounted to 60 percent of the total spent in Benjamin’s bid for election. And it paid off when Benjamin won a seat on the court.
Caperton’s lawyers filed a motion asking Justice Benjamin to recuse himself. But Justice Benjamin refused, explaining that there was "no reasonable basis" for doubting his impartiality. He then cast the decisive vote to reverse the $50 million verdict against Massey Coal, transforming Blankenship’s $3 million from a generous contribution to a very wise investment.
You may wonder how a judge with such an obvious conflict of interest gets to hear a case involving the man who bankrolled his candidacy for office. The answer? In West Virginia, judges decide for themselves whether a conflict is serious enough to justify recusal. As Slate’s Amanda Frost notes, that‘s a bit like allowing the “fox to decide whether he should be guarding the henhouse.” Now, the US Supreme Court will (hopefully) remind West Virginia that justice requires a somewhat more restrictive policy.
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