Two years ago, the acronyms FISC or FISA would require a majority to frantically hit the Google search. But thanks to Edward Snowden and his leaked information regarding the NSA, the general public is now aware of the domestic-based Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court's role: approving all government requests to engage in its various spying initiatives.

This weekend, Vice discovered an unusual, additional role for two FISC judges—stakeholder. According to 2013 financial disclosures obtained by the website, FISC Judge Susan Wright and FISC Judge Dennis Saylor each owned Verizon stock. Wright purchased (Scribd) $15,000 or less on October 22 and Saylor collected (Scribd) less than $1,000 from his stock in 2013. (As Vice notes, "the precise amount and value of each investment is unclear—like many government ethics disclosures, including those for federal lawmakers, investments amounts are revealed within certain ranges of value.)

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There is an ethics law for federal judges that, among other things, requires judges to avoid cases where they have a financial stake or where they may act in bias. This scenario isn't quite that clear-cut. While FISC absolutely ruled on situations involving Verizon, Vice points out FISC proceedings are ex parte. Telecoms may absolutely have a stake in these FISC rulings, but they aren't an active party for the NSA requests FISC rules on.

The website pointed out that FISC judges in the past have also owned telecom stock, though Verizon is the only named telecom in the NSA leaks to comply so far. Vice's requests for comment to the direct judges went unanswered as expected, but legal ethicists speaking to the site recommended the best solution is simply steering clear of such gray situations in the first place.