📱 The Strange Case of a Judge's Facebook Friendship Forces Recusal? | Herssein v. USAA | SC17-1848

🎙️ Florida Supreme Court Oral Argument | Case No. SC17-1848 Herssein & Herssein Law Offices v. United States Automobile Association (USAA) We explain that our conclusion that Facebook “friendship,” standing alone, is insufficient to warrant disqualification is consistent with the majority view in the other state In this landmark Florida Supreme Court oral argument, the Court considers whether a trial judge's Facebook "friendship" with a lawyer for a witness — and alleged violations of the Code of Judicial Conduct — require disqualification and recusal. The petitioner, attorney Ruben Herssein, argues that when the trial court judge was Facebook friends with the attorney for a key witness (Katina Toé) in his insurance dispute case against USAA, it created the appearance of impropriety requiring recusal. The case arose from a witness tampering motion filed in 2016. The trial judge had previously ordered two specific evidentiary hearings on the matter. The Third District Court of Appeal had held that a Facebook friendship alone is not sufficient grounds for disqualification. The Florida Supreme Court accepted the case to resolve the question of what standard applies when judges and lawyers are connected on social media — including whether a judge's public social media "friendship" constitutes a sufficiently close relationship to require recusal. The argument touches on judicial ethics, the Florida Code of Judicial Conduct, and the role of social media in modern legal practice. ⚖️ CASES CITED: • Third DCA conflict decision — Facebook friendship / judicial recusal • Florida Judicial Advisory Committee (JAC) Ethics Opinions — cited by both parties 📋 RULES & STATUTES CITED: • Florida Code of Judicial Conduct, Canon 3 — judicial impartiality and disqualification • Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.330 — https://floridarules.net/florida-rule... (disqualification of judges) 📄 FIND THE OPINION: https://supremecourt.flcourts.gov/cas... #FloridaSupremeCourt #OralArgument #JudicialEthics #Recusal #SocialMedia #Facebook #JudgeDisqualification #FloridaLaw