U.S. Office of Government Ethics
1201 New York Ave., NW
Suite 500
Washington, DC  20005-3917        	
        	
        	
        	
        	
        	
        	      May 9, 2006 
        	      DO-06-014

MEMORANDUM

TO:        Designated Agency Ethics Officials

FROM:	   Marilyn L. Glynn Acting Director

SUBJECT:   Court of Appeals Upholds OGE Rule on Teaching,
           Speaking and Writing



On May 3, 2006, the United States Court of Appeals for the
10th Circuit affirmed the decision of the district court in
Wolfe v. Barnhart, upholding the validity of 5 C.F.R. §
2635.807(a) against a first amendment challenge by an
administrative law judge (ALJ) of the Social Security
Administration (SSA).  See Wolfe v. Barnhart, No. 04-5194,
available at http://pacer.ca10.uscourts.gov/pdf/04-5194.pdf,
and http://www.kscourts.org/CA10/cases/2006/05/04-5194.htm.
The Court also upheld the interpretation of the Office of
Government Ethics that the rule prohibited the ALJ from
receiving royalties for a book he co-authored about the SSA
disability adjudication process, notwithstanding the fact that
the ALJ may have acquired expertise on the subject prior to
his employment by SSA.