Elite US law firm bends to Trump’s demands
US law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison has folded to President Trump’s executive order and agreed to supply $40m in free legal advice to the White House.
Trump’s administration has targeted firms whose lawyers have provided legal work that the President disagrees with. Last week, he issued an order threatening to suspend active security clearances of attorneys at Paul, Weiss and to terminate any federal contracts the firm has.
The law firm was singled out over the work of a former member, Mark Pomerantz, who oversaw an investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office into Trump’s finances before Trump became President.
Paul, Weiss was not alone, with similar orders issued against Covington & Burling and Perkins Coie earlier this month.
Perkins represented the 2016 campaign of Hillary Clinton, while Covington represents Jack Smith, the man who brought criminal charges against Trump.
Now, Trump has rescinded the executive order against Paul, Weiss after the firm reportedly agreed to disavow the use of DEI considerations in its hiring and to dedicate the equivalent of $40m in free legal services to support Trump administration policies.
In a statement issued by the White House, Brad Karp, the chairman of the law firm Paul Weiss, said: “We are gratified that the President has agreed to withdraw the Executive Order concerning Paul, Weiss. We look forward to an engaged and constructive relationship with the President and his administration.”
This came after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), a Federal agency, sent 11-page letters to 20 law firms requesting information on their DEI policies on Monday.
Among those 20 law firms are A&O Shearman, Freshfields, Hogan Lovells and Latham & Watkins.
As reported in this week’s Eyes on the Law column, Trump’s attack on Big Law, with huge offices in London, will put City lawyers in an awkward position.