Judicial assistance in settling cases is welcome. Coercion isn’t. The boundary, as broadly framed by Rule 2.6(b) of the American Bar Association’s Model Code of Judicial Conduct, is this: “A judge may encourage settlement of disputed matters in a proceeding but shall not act in a manner that coerces any party into settlement.” The problem is where to draw the fuzzy but crucial line between benign help and coercive conduct. As a former dean of the Northern Illinois University College of Law wrote …