WASHINGTON — Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch will not participate in an environmental case being argued next week after having reviewed the court's new ethics code, according to a letter sent Wednesday to lawyers involved.
The letter from Supreme Court Clerk Scott Harris did not explain why Gorsuch was recusing himself, saying only that "consistent with the code of conduct" he had decided not to participate.
Liberal groups and more than a dozen members of Congress had urged him to recuse himself over his previous links to billionaire Philip Anschutz.
Focus on Supreme Court justices and the rules that govern whether they recuse themselves from cases have drawn scrutiny in recent years, spurred largely by revelations about Justice Clarence Thomas’ ties to billionaire Harlan Crow. Justices have resisted codifying rules, but last year they adopted a new code of conduct that critics say lacks an enforcement mechanism.
The case Gorsuch opted to sit out revolves around the environmental review process for a railroad in Utah that would ship crude oil out of the Uinta Basin to existing railroads.
Anschutz has an interest in the project, as shown by an amicus brief Anschutz Exploration Corp. filed in the case backing it.
In a letter last month, Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., wrote on behalf of himself and colleagues that Gorsuch has "a serious and obvious conflict of interest that demands your recusal."
He mentioned that Gorsuch, before he became a judge, had represented Anschutz and his businesses and had close ties to him.
As an appeals court judge before he was appointed to the Supreme Court, Gorsuch usually stepped aside from cases involving Anschutz.
"I applaud Justice Gorsuch for doing the right and honorable thing," Johnson said in a statement. “It is important that the court show the public that it is not in the pocket of billionaire benefactors."
But he added that the court's ethics code should have an enforcement mechanism, which he has introduced legislation to address.
