Standards of Conduct for Members of the Conduct System

1. A member’s public and official behavior should be beyond reproach and free from impropriety or the appearance of impropriety.
2. No member should mention, comment upon, or discuss a case in any manner except when the Council itself is sitting to consider the case. This applies to both open and closed proceedings. When the accused student has elected an open hearing, the chair or the conduct officer may discuss issues publicly raised by the accused student.
3. A member should refrain from learning about the case prior to the hearing.
4. A member should not be swayed by partisan demands, public clamor, or consideration of personal popularity or notoriety, nor be apprehensive of unjust criticism.
5. Members should disqualify themselves from a case if it can be reasonably inferred that they are incapable of rendering an impartial judgment.
6. When considering a case, a member should always bear in mind that the member is deciding whether a particular University policy, regulation, or statute has been violated. A member, however, should consider the welfare of the individual and the integrity of the College community in setting sanctions for violations.
7. Violations of this Code of Ethics should be reported to the Judicial Council.

Each newly appointed student member of the Honor and Ethics Council will take the following oath to be administered by the Dean of the College:

I do solemnly affirm that I will work to the best of my ability as a member of the Honor and Ethics Council to render fair judgments, that I will observe the Code of Ethics, that I will adhere to the University’s conduct policies and to the rules and regulations of the University, and that I will always be mindful of the interests of the student, as well as the interests of the University and the public.

1. A member’s public and official behavior should be beyond reproach and free from impropriety or the appearance of impropriety.
2. A member should always bear in mind, both when investigating a case and presenting it before the Honor and Ethics Council and when advising a student, that the primary responsibility is to discover the truth and to present the facts of the case to the Honor and Ethics Council in a clear and cogent manner.
3. A member should advise students to the best of the member’s ability within the bounds of Wake Forest University policies and procedures.
4. A member should not knowingly advance a claim or defense if it cannot be supported by a good faith argument based upon University policies and procedures.
5. A member should maintain and protect private information concerning the accused student unless the disclosure is permitted by the student, the disclosure is necessary to carry out good faith advising or assistance, or the information concerns criminal activity unrelated to conduct giving rise to the charges under review.
6. A member should not knowingly conceal or obstruct access to facts or evidence necessary for consideration of a case, make a false statement, use perjured testimony, or counsel a student in conduct which the member knows is unlawful or a violation of University policy.
7. A member should not discuss the case or cause another to discuss the case with any member of any hearing panel. It is expected that the two (2) members appointed to a particular case, one to investigate and one to advise, will be in regular communication about investigation, both with each other and with the Judicial Liaison.
8. Violations of this Code of Ethics should be reported to the Judicial Council.