The law firm Perkins Coie has initiated legal action against the Trump administration due to an executive order.
signed by President Donald Trump earlier this week
those aimed at the company due to its representation of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.
Attorneys representing Perkins Coie
filed the lawsuit
On Tuesday, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, they also filed a motion seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent the implementation of the executive order.
The lawsuit stated, “This Order violates both the Constitution and our adversarial judicial process.” It further explained, “It clearly aims to intimidate individuals advocating viewpoints considered contrary to those held by the administration. This intimidation applies regardless of whether these perspectives are expressed on behalf of clients who pay for services or receive them at no cost.”
MORE: Trump issues executive order aimed at the legal team of ex-special counsel Jack Smith
It marks the initial legal challenge in what Trump has indicated will be a series of contests.
wave of executive actions
aiming to penalize law firms that have defended his alleged political adversaries.
The directive issued by Trump on March 6 requires that legal professionals employed by Perkins Coie must lose their security clearances and seeks to end all governmental contracts involving the company or those it represents. Additionally, this measure forbids federal departments from recruiting staff members currently at Perkins Coie and stops these individuals from entering government facilities.
We bring this case with reluctance,” the lawsuit stated. “Our firm consists of lawyers advocating for their clients; our attorneys and staff members are not activists or political affiliates. However, Perkins Coie’s capacity to serve client interests—and indeed, to function as a legal services enterprise—is currently facing an immediate threat. We refuse to let our clients be intimidated.
Upon signing the order, Trump referred to Perkins Coie’s involvement in the 2016 election and their connections to the ”
Steele Dossier
,” which detailed a series of highly salacious allegations about Trump that were later investigated by the FBI and determined to be unsubstantiated.
FURTHER: The unprecedented quantity of executive orders issued by Trump is pushing the boundaries of presidential authority.
In 2021, Marc Elias, having departed from Perkins Coie to establish his own practice, facilitated a deal between the research company Fusion GPS and himself for conducting opposition research targeting Trump prior to the 2016 presidential race. Subsequently, Fusion GPS enlisted the services of ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, who was responsible for assembling the dossier.
As mentioned in Perkins Coie’s lawsuit, though, the two lawyers highlighted in the body of the executive order “haven’t worked at the firm for many years.”
“The primary intention behind the Order’s retaliation is explicitly clear to both the general public and the media because the main objective is to deter upcoming lawyers from taking on specific clients,” the lawsuit stated.
