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Attorney General William Tong today joined 20 attorneys general in an amicus brief in support of law firm Susman Godfrey, which is challenging a presidential order issued to address rogue law firms.

President Trump believes that lawyers and law firms that engage in conduct detrimental to critical American interests should not be subsidized by American taxpayers or have access to our Nation’s secrets.

Per the White House Fact Sheet:

• Susman spearheads efforts to weaponize the American legal system and degrade the quality of American elections.
• Susman funds groups that engage in dangerous efforts to undermine the effectiveness of the U.S. military through the injection of political and radical ideology, and it supports efforts to discriminate on the basis of race.
• Susman has been accused of engaging in unlawful discrimination, including on the basis of race.
  • Susman administers a program where it offers financial awards and employment opportunities only to “students of color.

Tong and the coalition believe that the order "violates the firm’s rights to free speech, due process, and other constitutional protections."

“This executive order was a chilling attempt to bully the legal professional into silence and submission, and yet another lawless attempt to exact political revenge on those who defended the integrity of the 2020 election. The relationship between attorney and client is at the heart of our system of justice, and our courts must unequivocally end these illegal attacks,” said Attorney General Tong.

President Donald Trump has issued four executive orders against law firms like the one against Susman.

"These orders require federal officials to suspend any active security clearances held by the law firms’ workers, to refuse to engage with or hire employees of these firms, and to deny the law firms’ personnel entry to federal buildings. The orders also direct federal contractors to disclose any business with the law firms so that agencies can terminate any such contracts," says the press release from Tong's office.

Susman obtained temporary injunctive relief earlier this month and is now asking a judge to permanently block the executive order against it.

When granting the temporary injunctive relief, U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan said, “The executive order is based on a personal vendetta against a particular firm. And, frankly, I think the framers of our Constitution would view it as a shocking abuse of power."

AliKhan was appointed as a district judge for the District Court in DC by Joe Biden in 2023.

The attorneys general noted that "a fair and functioning judicial system depends on lawyers being willing to work on controversial cases or represent unpopular clients without fearing retribution by the government." The attorneys general also argue "the orders will harm their states’ residents by making it more difficult for many potential clients — especially those who currently rely on pro bono representation — to obtain legal services and vindicate their rights in court."

The coalition was led by the attorneys general from Washington, Illinois, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. Joining them in filing the briefs were Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

The brief can be found here. More information about previous amicus briefs in support of other law firms are here and here. State attorneys general also wrote a letter to support the legal community, which can be found here.

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