Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht, appearing before the Texas Ethics Commission, defended himself Thursday against allegations he broke campaign finance laws by accepting discounted legal fees to fight an abuse of office complaint.

The state commission took no action Thursday but will consider the matter at a formal hearing later, officials said. Hecht, the longest-serving member of the Texas Supreme Court, quietly slipped past reporters at the state capitol and did not return phone calls from The Associated Press.

“The result of us reaching no decision results in a formal hearing, which is open to the public,” said Wilhelmina Delco, a member of the Texas Ethics Commission. She said a date for the new hearing had not been set.

Hecht was sanctioned in 2006 by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, which alleged that he had abused his office by promoting Harriet Miers for a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court. Legal canons bar Texas judges from endorsing candidates for public office, but Hecht was able to get the sanction reversed on appeal by arguing that Miers was not running for elective office.

In the process, Hecht racked up about $440,000 in legal fees. Hecht later told supporters that he had gotten a substantial discount on the fees from attorney Chip Babcock and his firm, Jackson Walker. But a liberal watchdog group, Texas Watch, said Hecht never properly reported a discount totaling about $100,000.

The group filed a sworn complaint, saying the failure to report the cut-rate fees as a campaign gift constitutes a violation of state campaign finance laws. Texas Watch now wants the commission to fine the Republican judge up to $300,000.

“He violated state ethics laws by accepting an improper contribution for discounted legal fees,” said Alex Winslow, director of Texas Watch. “The bottom line for us is that Justice Hecht be held accountable for his actions.”

It’s not clear how long Hecht spent at the closed hearing. Reporters waiting for him to emerge were told Hecht had given them the slip.

“He’s been gone,” Delco said hours after the hearing began early Thursday afternoon. “He eased out the other door.”