GALVESTON, Texas (AP) - A longtime associate judge in Southeast Texas has resigned after a state ethics panel opinion raised questions about her hearing cases while practicing law.

The Galveston County Daily News (http://bit.ly/YdiLvP ) reported Thursday that Suzanne Schwab-Radcliffe was appointed in 1997 to hear child abuses cases. She earned $38,000 annually as a judge but quit following Wednesday's opinion by the Committee on Judicial Ethics.

The opinion says a family law judge cannot also practice family law in the same county or surrounding counties that use the same appeals courts.

Schwab-Radcliffe says an agreement with fellow judges allowed her private cases to be heard in their courts.

Judge Christopher Dupuy sought the opinion. Dupuy in November disqualified Schwab-Radcliffe from a divorce proceeding and found her in contempt. The contempt order was later reversed.

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