I am about to write a series of statements that are each fairly described as, if you will allow me to use the technical, legal term, “bananas.”
- People with way too much money on their hands are spending actual money on things called Non-Fungible Tokens (“NFTs”). NFTs are – in laymen’s terms – unique electronic-only items ranging from the category of – at least somewhat understandable though overpriced – fan paraphernalia like the NBA’s Top Shot product to digital-only recreations of works of art that people are paying literally millions of dollars for.
2. The Tennessee Judicial Ethics Committee has issued an ethics opinion (Advisory Opinion 21-01) for Tennessee judges to advise that a judge cannot ethically agree to have their likeness used in an NFT that would be sold to raise money for a for-profit organization even if part of the funds raised would then be contributed to not-for-profit entities engaged in efforts to help provide better access to justice.
3. An actual company was proposing to create an NFT of the image of one or more Tennessee judges to auction off to the highest bidder under the premise that this would raise money and that some of the proceeds would then be able to be donated to Legal Aid entities and other charitable entities.
4. One of the reasons that the judicial ethics committee pointed to in explaining that it would be unethical for a judge in Tennessee to participate in the arrangement was the concern that members of the general public might perceive that the person who purchased the NFT of the judge’s image might have a position of influence over the judge.
Now, for the non “bananas” content, other than that last little bit that almost is more grounded in voodoo orthodoxy than the judicial ethics rules, the opinion reaches the correct result and gives the correct guidance that a judge cannot participate because they cannot lend their image to such a fundraising endeavor because of ethical prohibitions on abusing the prestige of judicial office to advance the economic interests of others.
So, in the end, this is good advice to Tennessee judges but, sakes alive, I can’t believe the question even came up.
I guess now the only thing left to know is how for how exactly much can I sell this NFT of Opinion 21-01 I’m about to create?