Justice Gorsuch has decided to recuse himself from a pending environmental case due to ethics code concerns.

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Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch will not participate in an upcoming environmental case after reviewing the court’s ethics code. The decision comes after pressure from liberal groups and members of Congress over his prior links to billionaire Philip Anschutz, who has an interest in the case. Gorsuch’s recusal brings attention to the rules governing when justices should step aside from cases due to conflicts of interest. This issue has been under scrutiny in recent years, especially in light of Justice Clarence Thomas’ ties to billionaire Harlan Crow. The case Gorsuch is sitting out involves an environmental review process for a railroad in Utah that Anschutz has a stake in. Before becoming a judge, Gorsuch represented Anschutz and his businesses, leading some to question his impartiality in the case. Critics of the court’s new ethics code argue that it lacks an enforcement mechanism, raising concerns about how justices manage conflicts of interest. Rep. Hank Johnson and several other members of Congress have called for Gorsuch’s recusal, citing his past ties to Anschutz as a conflict of interest.

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