The Trump administration is openly targeting Biglaw firms for their representation of clients and causes adverse to the president’s political agenda. Five top firms — Covington & Burling, Perkins Coie, Paul Weiss, Jenner & Block, and WilmerHale — have found themselves on the receiving end of Trump’s retaliatory executive orders, reported Above the Law. On top of these (likely unconstitutional) executive actions, Trump has sicced the EEOC on 20 Biglaw firms over their DEI policies, with the agency launching full-scale investigations into their alleged “unlawful” employment practices.
Outside support for these law firms has come from more than 50 bar associations, nearly 80 law school deans, and now more than 3,000 lawyers and
legal organizations from both sides of the political spectrum have sent a
letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, pleading with America’s top government
lawyer to step in and defend the rule of law by opposing not just attacks on
these law firms, but on judges as well.
The letter, which was put together by the Society for the
Rule of Law Institute and Democracy Forward, urges Bondi to live up to what she
promised to do during her confirmation hearings and refuse to back “partisan
weaponization” of the Justice Department. Here’s an excerpt
from the letter:
It is your responsibility, as the lawyer ultimately
entrusted with the representation of the United States in legal matters, to
oppose attacks on the legal profession, on judges, and on the rule of law and
to ensure that the Department of Justice uses its full power to protect the
legal profession and equal justice under law for all people. …
It is incumbent on you to use all of the tools available to
you to preserve and protect the independence and integrity of the legal
profession, including opposing the use of the federal government to attack
lawyers, law firms, and legal organizations for engaging in good faith
representation of their clients.
Reuters has additional details on some of the lawyers
who signed the letter:
Republican signatories included J. Michael Luttig, a former
U.S. appeals court judge; former U.S. Representative Barbara Comstock, a senior
advisor at Baker Donelson; Peter Keisler, a former acting U.S. attorney general
under President George W. Bush; and Donald Ayer, a former top Justice
Department lawyer under President George H.W. Bush.
Democrats who signed the letter included Marc Elias, a
longtime lawyer for Democratic politicians whom Trump
has criticized, and Norm Eisen, whose group the State Democracy Defenders
Action is suing the Trump administration in several cases.
If you agree that Attorney General Pam Bondi should do her
job properly by standing up for the legal profession and the rule of law,
please click here to add your name to the list of signatories.
To read more CLICK HERE
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