LDF Files Amicus Brief Defending Against Trump Administration’s Attempt to Target Major Law Firms and Undermine the Rule of Law

Read a PDF of our statement here.

Today, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) filed an amicus briefsupporting law firms Jenner & Block, Perkins Coie, Susman Godfrey, and WilmerHale in their efforts to defend a court ruling which prevented the Trump Administration from implementing executive orders seeking to punish the firms for providing legal representation to clients that the President views as political adversaries. This case is now before the ‌U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit after the Department of Justice appealed the district court rulings striking down the executive orders as blatantly unconstitutional.

In its brief, LDF draws parallels between the executive orders and an overlooked tactic used by Southern state governments to resist school desegregation following the Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Educationdecision: the attempted intimidation of civil rights lawyers and civil rights organizations. The brief also argues that the executive orders interfere with the constitutionally protected right to counsel and unlawfully punish the firms without due process.

Janai Nelson, President and Director-Counsel at LDFreleased the following statement:

"The Trump Administration's staunch defense of such unlawful executive orders is fueled by efforts to trample core constitutional principles and undermine the rule of law. The fundamental right to counsel is a pillar of the U.S. justice system, and exposing it to the personal and political whims of any administration or individual turns that system against the very people it is meant to serve.

"These Jim Crow-era tactics to obstruct justice and keep civil rights advocates out of the courtroom have been thwarted time and time again. Attorneys should not be subject to constant fear of attack and retaliation for representing clients dedicated to pursuing this country's highest ideals of equality. We stand in solidarity with our legal colleagues who have come under fire, and we will continue defending the rule of law with every tool at our disposal." 

Read the full brief here.

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Founded in 1940, theLegal Defense Fund (LDF)is the nation's first civil rights legalorganization. LDF has beencompletely separatefrom the National Association for theAdvancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957, though it was founded under theleadership of Thurgood Marshall while he was at the NAACP. LDF's Thurgood Marshall Institute (TMI) is a division of LDF that undertakes innovative research and houses LDF'sarchive. In all media attributions, please refer to us as the Legal Defense Fund or LDF (do not include NAACP) and refer to the Institute as LDF's Thurgood Marshall Institute or TMI.