Five prominent law firms facing potential punitive actions by President Trump reached a deal with the White House on Friday, offering a total of $600 million free legal services that will cause the president to support.
Four companies (Kirkland & Ellis, Latham & Watkins, A&O Shearman, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett) have each agreed to provide $125 million in free legal work, according to Trump. The fifth company, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, agreed to provide at least $100 million in Probon work.
With the latest deal, some of the largest companies in the legal profession have agreed to provide a total of $940 million free legal services for the past month to support the Trump administration, including “conservative ideals.”
Trump has announced an agreement between his administration and his law firm on True Social, a platform owned by his social media company Trump Media & Technology Group.
Top lawyers from each company provided a statement to the White House, which was included in the social media post. Earlier this week, the New York Times reported on negotiations with four companies.
The deal opened up about Trump's discussions at his oval office, helping to negotiate trade deals with other countries, and using the companies he traded to work on coal lease transactions.
Trump did not specifically mention any potential work on trade transactions or coal lease agreements in social media posts. Rather, the post said businesses would devote free legal work to combat anti-Semitism, supporting Goldstar families, law enforcement agencies, and “ensure fairness in the judicial system.”
The terms are similar to those Trump previously announced with Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher, Willkie Farr, Gallagher, and Milbank.
The law firm has settled with the Trump administration to issue executive orders that make it difficult for them to represent clients in federal contracts or seek approval from government regulators. Three companies are fighting Trump's executive orders in federal court, and the judge temporarily did not put the orders against Perkins Coie, Wilmerhale, Jenner & Block into effect.
The fourth company, Susman Godfrey, was hit by an executive order this week and said he intends to fight it in the Trump administration and courtroom.
Trump is chasing law firms who hired lawyers he perceives as his political opponents, refusing to represent the causes he opposed or represent people because of conservative, right-wing political beliefs. Some companies are targeted by employment practices that advance the principle of having a diverse workforce.
The president has repeatedly said that diversity, equity and inclusion policies in employment are illegal and discriminatory, and that he intends to remove them. The federal Equal Employment Opportunity Committee, in what is considered a related move, sent a letter to 20 law firms last month requesting information on DEI practices.
Trump and the four companies that reached (Kirkland, Latham, Sheerman and Simpson Tacher) each received one of those letters. In the settlement, Trump said the EEOC agreed not to pursue claims against these four companies.
Law industry law professors and others praise businesses fighting the regime, criticizing those who have settled. Critics said each new settlement would only encourage Trump to become even more brave in his demands for free legal work.
The Trump administration appears to believe it “fosters a war breast” to do its job, says Harold Hongju Ko, a professor of international law at Yale Law School, was the author of a recently published paper called Unconstitutional Order Unconstitutional Retaliation Measure.
