To Fold or Fight: Law Firms Weigh Risks of Trump Resistance

KQED's Forum

KQED

News Commentary, News, Politics

4.2 • 727 Ratings

🗓️ 3 April 2025

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Willkie Farr & Gallagher, the law firm that employs former second gentleman Doug Emhoff, is among the latest to cut a deal with the Trump administration, agreeing to provide $100 million in free legal services to causes the President supports. In executive orders Trump has targeted several high profile firms he considers hostile to him, and the capitulation by some firms has constitutional law experts alarmed. We talk about the implications for democracy and the First Amendment, and we’ll hear from one San Francisco firm that’s fighting back. Guests: Raymond Brescia, professor, Albany Law School; author, "Lawyer Nation: The Past, Present, and Future of the American Legal Profession" Laurie Carr Mims, managing partner, Keker Van Nest & Peters Jessica Silver-Greenberg, investigative reporter, The New York Times Rachel Cohen, former associate, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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1:03.9	Coming up on forum, how law firms are responding to Trump's revenge campaign of executive orders and threats.
1:11.9	Wilkie Far and Gallagher,
1:16.4	the firm that employs former second gentleman, Doug Emhoff, has cut a deal with the Trump administration, agreeing to provide $100 million in legal services to causes the president likes.
1:23.4	The capitulation by law firms has constitutional law experts alarmed.
	...

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