Trump's campaign against law firms dealt another setback as judge blocks
executive order
[May 28, 2025]
By ERIC TUCKER
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's campaign against the legal
profession hit another setback Tuesday as a federal judge struck down an
executive order that sought to sanction one of the country's most
prestigious law firms.
The ruling in favor of WilmerHale marks the third time this month that a
federal judge in Washington has deemed Trump's series of law firm
executive orders to be unconstitutional and permanently barred their
enforcement.
“The cornerstone of the American system of justice is an independent
judiciary and an independent bar willing to tackle unpopular cases,
however daunting. The Founding Fathers knew this!” wrote U.S. District
Judge Richard Leon.
To permit the order to stand, Leon wrote, “would be unfaithful to the
judgment and vision of the Founding Fathers.”
The firm applauded the ruling from Leon, an appointee of former
Republican President George W. Bush.
“The Court’s decision to permanently block the unlawful executive order
in its entirety strongly affirms our foundational constitutional rights
and those of our clients. We remain proud to defend our firm, our
people, and our clients,” a spokesperson for the firm said.
The ruling was similar to one from Friday by a different judge that
rejected a Trump edict against the firm of Jenner & Block and another
one from earlier in the month in favor of the firm Perkins Coie. Taken
together, the decisions have marked a blunt repudiation of Trump’s
actions, which the law firms have called an affront to the legal system
and inconsistent with the foundational principle that lawyers can
represent clients or causes without government reprisal.
The firms had faced executive orders that sought to impose the same set
of punishing sanctions, including mandating the suspension of attorney
security clearances and barring employees from accessing federal
buildings. The orders have been part of a broader effort by the
president to reshape American civil society by targeting perceived
adversaries in hopes of extracting concessions from them and bending
them to his will.
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President Donald Trump speaks during the 157th National Memorial Day
Observance at Arlington National Cemetery, Monday, May 26, 2025, in
Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
In his ruling, Leon said the provisions of the order against
WilmerHale “constitute a staggering punishment for the firm’s
protected speech! The Order is intended to, and does in fact, impede
the firm’s ability to effectively represent its clients!”
He added: “The Order shouts through a bullhorn: If you take on
causes disfavored by President Trump, you will be punished!”
Several of the firms singled out for sanctions have either done
legal work that Trump has opposed, or currently have or previously
had associations with prosecutors who at one point investigated the
president.
The order against WilmerHale, for instance, cited the fact that the
firm previously employed former Justice Department special counsel
Robert Mueller, who led an investigation during Trump's first term
into potential ties between Russia and Trump's 2016 campaign.
Other major firms have sought to avert orders by preemptively
reaching settlements that require them, among other things, to
collectively dedicate hundreds of millions of dollars in free legal
services in support of causes the Trump administration says it
supports.
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