US law firm Jenner asks court to permanently bar Trump executive order
Source: Reuters
April 28, 2025 1:48 PM EDT Updated 3 hours ago
April 28 (Reuters) - U.S. law firm Jenner & Block asked a judge on Monday to permanently bar Republican U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive order punishing the firm for its affiliation with a prosecutor who investigated ties between his 2016 campaign and Russia.
A lawyer for the firm told U.S. District Judge John Bates at a hearing in Washington that the danger of Trump's pressure campaign against law firms had only grown since Jenner was targeted in the March order. "We've seen more executive orders, and we've seen nine prominent, powerful law firms bend to the threat of the executive order, reaching unknown accommodations with the administration," attorney Michael Attanasio said.
Trump's order "reeks of unconstitutionality," he said. Bates heard arguments for nearly two hours but did not issue a ruling. The judge, a Republican appointee, expressed concerns about the scope of Trump's order and the justifications that the administration has made for it. "Everything in this executive order is intended to provide a burden on Jenner," Bates said during an exchange with Richard Lawson, a Justice Department lawyer defending the order.
Lawson asserted Trump's order was allowed under the broad reach of presidential authority. The president has argued that Jenner and other firms "weaponized" the legal system against him and his allies. Trump's order against Chicago-founded Jenner cited its past employment of Andrew Weissmann, a top federal prosecutor in U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Trump has described the Russia investigation as a "hoax" and "witch hunt."
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-law-firm-jenner-asks-court-permanently-bar-trump-executive-order-2025-04-28/
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