{"id":4563,"date":"2025-02-28T20:48:00","date_gmt":"2025-02-28T20:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chicagocouncil.org\/staging\/1601\/?p=4563"},"modified":"2026-02-04T23:06:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T05:06:08","slug":"statement-opposing-trump-administrations-targeting-of-pro-bono-counsel-representing-jack-smith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chicagocouncil.org\/staging\/1601\/statement-opposing-trump-administrations-targeting-of-pro-bono-counsel-representing-jack-smith\/","title":{"rendered":"STATEMENT OPPOSING TRUMP ADMINISTRATION\u2019S TARGETING OF PRO BONO COUNSEL REPRESENTING JACK SMITH"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>On February 25, 2025, President Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/trump-signs-executive-action-targeting-law-firm-representing\/story?id=119190846\">issued a memorandum<\/a> suspending the security clearances of all partners and employees of Covington &amp; Burling LLP who assisted former Special Counsel Jack Smith. The memorandum also ordered all federal departments and agencies to terminate any engagement of Covington &amp; Burling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Attorneys at Covington &amp; Burling, a well-known law firm, represent former Special Counsel Jack Smith on a pro bono basis. Covington &amp; Burling recently agreed to help Smith, in his personal capacity, after it became apparent that he would become the subject of a government investigation because of the work he performed as Special Counsel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Chicago Council of Lawyers believes that attorneys have a responsibility to represent parties who are being attacked by the government, and the Council applauds Covington &amp; Burling for representing Jack Smith on a pro bono basis. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the Council\u2019s view, there is no legitimate reason to suspend the security clearances of partners and employees of Covington &amp; Burling, and President Trump\u2019s actions are intended to punish Covington &amp; Burling merely because of its representation of Jack Smith. The President\u2019s actions also handicap Smith in defending himself in the government\u2019s investigation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The use of government power to punish perceived \u201cenemies\u201d is a hallmark of autocracy. By taking these actions against Covington &amp; Burling, the Trump administration is attempting to intimidate other attorneys and law firms from representing persons who oppose the administration\u2019s agenda. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Chicago Council of Lawyers urges its members and all attorneys throughout the country to meet this moment and continue to fulfill their ethical duties to diligently represent their clients, including with zeal in advocacy before the courts, and without fear of retaliation from the federal government.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/chicagocouncil.org\/staging\/1601\/become-a-member-or-renew-your-membership\/\">Click here to become a member of the Chicago Council of Lawyers.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On February 25, 2025, President Trump issued a memorandum suspending  [&#8230;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4568,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[187],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-judicial-performance-and-accountability"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - 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