A complaint against Texas Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht took a step forward Thursday when the state ethics commission decided to hold a formal hearing over the judge’s failure to report about $100,000 in donated legal services.

Similar reviews over the discounted legal fees are being conducted by the Travis County district attorney’s office and the Commission on Judicial Conduct.

Texas Watch, a campaign and consumer watchdog group, filed the complaints against Justice Hecht for his failure to publicly report a discount he received from the Jackson Walker law firm. The complaint alleges that besides not listing the discount in campaign documents as an in-kind contribution, the $100,000 in pro bono work exceeds the $30,000 limit that law firms can make to judges.

The question is whether pro bono work done for a judge constitutes a gift or a political contribution.

Members of the ethics commission met for four hours behind closed doors. Justice Hecht attended at least some of the meeting, which was closed to the public.

Afterward, they announced the complaint would move to a formal hearing, but a date has not been set.

“We are certainly glad that the Ethics Commission is taking this seriously,” said Alex Winslow of Texas Watch.

Justice Hecht could not be reached for comment.

The issue began in 2006 after Charles Babcock successfully defended the judge against a public admonishment he received for his public support of Harriet Miers, who had been nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Justice Hecht paid Mr. Babcock and his firm, Jackson Walker, about $330,000 for the legal representation, according to state disclosure forms. Mr. Babcock said the judge had negotiated a 25 percent discount on the fees as pro bono work – free legal services for public good.

That discount was never reported as a gift or as a contribution.