Law professors at the University of Virginia School of Law are taking a stand against Donald Trump's retaliatory executive orders aimed at law firms and their attorneys. They express concern over the targeting of legal professionals based on their representation of clients disfavored by the administration. This stance, while less aggressive than an earlier amicus brief signed by numerous scholars, reflects a significant moral commitment to uphold legal norms, particularly as noted by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, emphasizing the crucial role of law schools in protecting the rule of law.
Like professors at other law schools, we are concerned by the recent federal executive orders that appear to target law firms and individual lawyers for retribution based either on the President's grievances or on lawful and ethical representation of clients disfavored by the current administration. In the words of the preamble to the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, "An independent legal profession is an important force in preserving government under law, for abuse of legal authority is more readily challenged by a profession whose members are not dependent on government for the right to practice."
The statement doesn't come out swinging as hard as the 363-professor amicus brief, but the bravery it takes for professors to stand up for the rule of law despite the risk of backlash is still commendable.
As Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned, law schools have a role to play in upholding the legal norms that make the rule of law possible - you can take a little comfort in knowing that so many of the faculty at UVA Law are doing their part to fight for them.
In the face of Donald Trump's facially unconstitutional retaliatory executive orders, we've been seeing a lot of folding from Biglaw: Paul Weiss, Skadden, Willkie, Milbank, and potentially Kirkland.
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