Washington, DC (March 18, 2025) – The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL) remains deeply concerned over recent executive orders targeting law firms, most recently Paul Weiss and Perkins Coie, and repeats its call to uphold the right to counsel and the independence of the legal profession. Despite a ruling blocking the action against Perkins Coie, the administration has continued to target law firms representing disfavored clients and positions, threatening the right to a zealous defense.
“The right of all individuals, regardless of popularity, to obtain a meaningful defense is uniquely American, deeply embedded in our nation’s history, and a cornerstone of our constitution,” said NACDL President Christopher Wellborn. “All individuals, of all political affiliations, are guaranteed access to counsel. If law firms are punished for who they represent, then these rights are effectively dismantled. Discouraging lawyers from taking clients who the government deems unworthy of defense threatens the very foundation of the Sixth Amendment.”
“The Constitution's framers enshrined freedom of speech to facilitate democracy, and the rights to representation and confrontation to protect against arbitrary state power—an experience they knew firsthand with the King,” said NACDL Executive Director Lisa Wayne. “These protections were embedded to ensure we could exercise our liberties as outlined in the Declaration of Independence. The right to representation within the criminal legal system safeguards the boundary between state power and individual liberty, a reality President Trump has experienced through his repeated use of representation over the past decade.
“As John Adams stated, the right to trial by jury is ‘the heart and lungs of democracy.’ Without representation, this right is rendered meaningless. Therefore, in defense of democracy, liberty, and the Constitution, we champion the right to representation. On Gideon's anniversary, we urge the President to uphold every American's right to choose effective representation when faced with government action.”
Contacts
Jessie Diamond, Deputy Director, Public Affairs and Communications, (202) 465-7647 or jdiamond@nacdl.org
The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers is the preeminent organization advancing the mission of the criminal defense bar to ensure justice and due process for persons accused of crime or wrongdoing. A professional bar association founded in 1958, NACDL's many thousands of direct members in 28 countries – and 90 state, provincial and local affiliate organizations totaling up to 40,000 attorneys – include private criminal defense lawyers, public defenders, military defense counsel, law professors and judges committed to preserving fairness and promoting a rational and humane criminal legal system.
