DOJ, in reversal, will continue its fight against law firms targeted by Trump
The four law firms represented political foes of the president.
The Justice Department said Tuesday it will continue its legal fight to reinstate executive orders signed by President Donald Trump last year targeting four elite law firms, marking an abrupt reversal a day after it informed an appeals court it was seeking to drop the case.
On Monday, the Justice Department said in a court filing it was dropping its effort to revive several executive orders that sought to target four 'Big Law' firms -- Perkins Coie, Susman Godfrey, Wilmer Hale and Jenner & Block -- that had either employed or represented political targets of President Trump.
It is not immediately clear what prompted Tuesday's reversal, though it followed a series of headlines that noted the administration's decision to back down from the orders.
Four separate federal judges -- appointees of presidents from both parties -- had previously granted permanent restraining orders sought by the firms after determining the executive orders were unconstitutional. In February, a panel of judges on D.C.'s circuit court blocked efforts by the DOJ to delay a hearing in their bid to revive the orders, and scheduled a series of filing deadlines in the case for later this week.
According to sources, the White House counsel's office had initially supported the decision to drop the case altogether -- but as of Tuesday morning, discussions in the White House were still ongoing about how to proceed.
Several of the firms issued statements Monday following the news the administration was dropping its appeal, hailing the move as a victory for free speech and the independence of the legal profession.
The move also prompted a renewed wave of criticism for the nine top law firms which opted to enter into agreements with the White House totaling tens of millions of dollars in pro bono legal work, rather than face sweeping restrictions on their work with the government.
Those settlements, which totaled nearly $1 billion by the White House's last calculation, led to an exodus of multiple high-profile attorneys at several of the firms who said the agreements amounted to capitulation in response to an unlawful intimidation campaign by the Trump administration.