District Court Blocks Executive Order Against Jenner & Block
A U.S. district court judge ruled Friday that a White House executive order targeting Jenner & Block was “doubly violative of the Constitution” and granted a motion for summary judgment and a preliminary injunction blocking it (see 2504280022). “Retaliating against…
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firms for the views embodied in their legal work -- and thereby seeking to muzzle them going forward -- violates the First Amendment’s central command that government may not ‘use the power of the State to punish or suppress disfavored expression,’” U.S. District Court Judge John Bates wrote in the opinion. The executive order “casts a chill over the whole of the legal profession, leaving lawyers around the country weighing the necessity of vigorous representation against the peril of crossing the federal government.” Bates ordered the White House and federal agencies to rescind all guidance and direction on barring Jenner attorneys from federal facilities, reviewing security clearances and requiring federal contractors to disclose relationships with the firm. DOJ and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission must also cease any related investigations of Jenner. The White House is expected to appeal the ruling.