28 U.S.C. § 352 — Review of complaint by chief judge

(a) The chief judge must review a misconduct or disability complaint quickly. To decide what to do, the chief judge can run a limited inquiry -- just to see whether the problem has already been fixed (or can be, without a full investigation), and whether the complaint's claims are clearly untrue or impossible to prove through investigation. The chief judge can ask the judge who's the subject of the complaint to respond in writing; that response stays private unless that judge allows it to be shared. The chief judge (or a designee) can also talk with the complainant, the judge, or anyone else who might know something, and can review transcripts or other documents. But the chief judge can't make findings of fact on anything that's genuinely in dispute. (b) After that review, the chief judge -- in a written order explaining the reasons -- can either: (1) dismiss the complaint, if it doesn't meet the filing rules in section 351(a), is really just a complaint about the merits of a ruling, is frivolous, lacks enough evidence to suggest misconduct happened, makes claims that can't be proven by investigating, or if the limited inquiry shows the claims have no factual basis or are clearly disproven by objective evidence; or (2) close the case, if appropriate action has already been taken or the complaint is now moot because of other events. Either way, the chief judge sends copies of the order to the complainant and to the judge involved. (c) A complainant or judge who's unhappy with the chief judge's final order can ask the circuit's judicial council to review it. If the council denies review, that decision is final -- it can't be appealed or reviewed anywhere else. (d) Each judicial council can, under rules it makes following section 358, send a review petition to a panel of at least 5 council members, at least 2 of whom must be district judges.