La. Code Civ. Proc. art. 151 : Code of Civil Procedure — COURTS, ACTIONS, AND PARTIES — COURTS — RECUSAL OF JUDGES — Grounds

A. A judge of any trial or appellate court shall be recused upon any of the following grounds:

(1) The judge is a witness in the cause.

(2) The judge has been employed or consulted as an attorney in the cause or has previously been associated with an attorney during the latter's employment in the cause, and the judge participated in representation in the cause.

(3) The judge is the spouse of a party, or of an attorney employed in the cause or the judge's parent, child, or immediate family member is a party or attorney employed in the cause.

(4) The judge is biased, prejudiced, or interested in the cause or its outcome or biased or prejudiced toward or against the parties or the parties' attorneys or any witness to such an extent that the judge would be unable to conduct fair and impartial proceedings.

A judge of any trial or appellate court shall also be recused when there exists a substantial and objective basis that would reasonably be expected to prevent the judge from conducting any aspect of the cause in a fair and impartial manner.

C. In any cause in which the state or a political subdivision thereof is interested, the fact that the judge is a citizen of the state or a resident of the political subdivision, or pays taxes thereto, is not a ground for recusal. In any cause in which a religious body or religious corporation is interested, the fact that the judge is a member of the religious body or religious corporation is not alone a ground for recusal.

Comments - 2021

(a) Former Paragraph B of this Article, which set forth permissive grounds for recusal, has been deleted, and its substance has been moved to a new provision, Article 152, which provides for the mandatory disclosures that a judge must make to all parties and attorneys in the cause.

(b) A new Paragraph B has been added to provide an additional mandatory ground for recusal when a substantial and objective basis exists that would reasonably be expected to prevent the judge from conducting any aspect of the cause in a fair and impartial manner. This provision is intended to serve as a catch-all supplementing the mandatory grounds for recusal set forth in Paragraph A and to incorporate a clearer, more objective standard than the language of Canon 3C of the Code of Judicial Conduct, which provides that a judge should recuse himself when "the judge's impartiality might reasonably be questioned."

(c) This Article and Article 153(B) are intended to set forth the exclusive grounds for the recusal of a judge in a civil proceeding.

La. C.P. § 151

Amended by Acts 2021, No. 143,s. 1, eff. 8/1/2021.

Acts 1983, No. 106, §1; Acts 1987, No. 579, §1; Acts 1988, No. 515, §2, eff. 1/1/1989; Acts 2008, No. 663, §1.