The Restatement of Values of Judicial Life is a concept and a non-statutory code of judicial ethics adopted by the Supreme Court of India. It was created on May 7, 1997, during a Full Court Meeting of the Supreme Court, and later ratified by the Chief Justices' Conference in 1999. The code was developed as a self-regulatory measure during a period of institutional introspection to establish clear ethical guidelines for judges and serve as a guide for an independent and respected judiciary. It addresses the problem of maintaining public faith in the judiciary by setting out a framework for the conduct of judges in the absence of statutory laws governing judicial conduct.
The Restatement is a non-exhaustive, 16-point framework that outlines the ethical conduct expected of judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts. Its core mechanism is the principle that "Justice must not merely be done but it must also be seen to be done". Key provisions include the requirement that a judge must avoid any act that erodes public faith in the impartiality of the judiciary. A judge must not contest elections or hold office in non-law-related clubs or associations. Furthermore, a judge must not give interviews to the media, but rather "let his judgments speak for themselves". The code also mandates that a judge must not hear matters where a family member is a member of the Bar appearing before them, or where the judge holds shares in a concerned company without disclosure.
The Restatement connects to the in-house procedure for addressing allegations of judicial misconduct, which was created in October 1997 and formally adopted in 1999. It also relates to the Oath of a Judge contained in the Third Schedule of the Constitution of India and the international Bangalore Principles of Judicial Conduct, 2002. While the original 1997 resolution specified that asset declarations would remain confidential, a significant change occurred when judges agreed to declare assets publicly on a voluntary basis following a 2009 full court meeting. This evolution was further solidified in 2018 when a Constitution Bench ruled that judges' assets and liabilities are not exempt from Right to Information (RTI) inquiries. The fundamental 16 values of judicial life, however, have stayed the same.