President Donald Trump withdrew an executive order targeting a major Democratic-leaning law firm after the firm agreed to provide $40 million in pro bono legal services in support of his administration’s far right initiatives.
“This is unbelievably shameful from Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP,” Molly Coleman, executive director at People’s Parity Project, said on LinkedIn. “I’m embarrassed to have any association with this firm that failed to find the courage the moment requires.”
Recently, the White House has escalated attacks on law firms whose attorneys have been involved in legal efforts opposing Trump. Just last week, Trump signed an executive order attempting to revoke security clearances from Paul, Weiss attorneys, restrict the firm’s access to federal buildings, and terminate any of its government contracts. The order reportedly prompted at least one client to sever ties with the firm.
However, following a meeting between Trump and Brad Karp, the chair of Paul, Weiss, the administration abruptly rescinded the order. “We look forward to an engaged and constructive relationship with the President and his Administration,” Karp said in a statement.
According to a Truth Social post by Trump, the firm agreed to multiple terms, including representing right-wing legal causes in pro bono matters, which may open the door to providing free legal defense to conservative organizations, anti-LGBTQ groups, and other right-wing actors under the guise of nonpartisanship.
The agreement also requires the firm to “conduct a comprehensive audit of all of its employment practices,” effectively abandoning diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives as part of a broader right-wing campaign against DEI.
“Paul, Weiss has been dedicated to diversity since the day the firm was created. Our founders — two lawyers who were, by tradition, not allowed to practice together because of their differing religions — decided to create a firm where diversity was the norm, not the exception,” Karp was quoted as saying in the firm’s 2015 diversity brochure. That year, the firm achieved the highest possible rating on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, and was named “One of Best Places to Work for LGBT Equality.”
“This is the law firm that has spent decades proudly touting the fact that they worked with Thurgood Marshall on Brown v. Board of Education,” Coleman said. “ To go from that to promising the man who is hell-bent on destroying our democracy that they’ll ‘conduct an audit to ensure [their] hiring practices are merit based’…it’s a dark, dark moment for lawyers, the rule of law, and the future of our country.”
In addition, the firm committed to “dedicate the equivalent of $40 million in pro bono legal services over the course of President Trump’s term to support the Administration’s initiatives,” including the Trump administration’s targeting of pro-Palestine activists under the guise of “combating antisemitism.”
The agreement further required the firm to “acknowledge the wrongdoing of former Paul, Weiss partner, Mark Pomerantz, the grave dangers of Weaponization, and the vital need to restore our System of Justice.” Pomerantz was instrumental in building legal cases against Trump, and the firm’s agreement to label his work as “wrongdoing” is notable — especially since Pomerantz left Paul, Weiss in 2012, long before he began investigating Trump’s finances.
“It is a sad day for the legal industry. Paul, Weiss, didn’t just bend a knee, it set a new standard for shameful capitulation. This is a stain on the firm, every one of its partners, and the entire legal profession,” Marc Elias, founder of Democracy Docket, said on Bluesky.
Trump has also targeted other large corporate law firms, including Covington & Burling and Perkins Coie. Last week, a federal judge found that the executive order aimed at Perkins Coie was likely unconstitutional, and issued a temporary restraining order blocking its enforcement. Meanwhile, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has said that it is continuing to investigate the employment practices of numerous law firms for possible “discrimination”— meaning, in this context, DEI policies.
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