A third Democratic-aligned law firm has reached an agreement with the Trump administration to escape sanctions that would have crushed its government business.
The law firm of Willkie Farr & Gallagher agreed to eliminate “illegal DEI discrimination and preferences” and to spend “at least $100 Million” in pro bono legal work for causes that the law firm and White House agree on, according to a statement posted to President Donald Trump’s Truth Social account on Tuesday.
Doug Emhoff, the husband of former Vice President Kamala Harris, is a partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher.
“Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP proactively reached out to President Trump and his Administration, offering their decisive commitment to ending the Weaponization of the Justice System and the Legal Profession. The President is delivering on his promises of eradicating Partisan Lawfare in America, and restoring Liberty and Justice FOR ALL,” the White House said in a statement, according to the president’s Truth Social post.
The law firm also committed to not denying representation to clients over the “personal political views of individual lawyers.”
“We reached an agreement with President Trump and his Administration on matters of great importance to our Firm. The substance of that agreement is consistent with our Firm’s views on access to Legal representation by clients, including pro bono clients, our commitment to complying with the Law as it relates to our employment practices, and our history of working with clients across a wide spectrum of political viewpoints,” the firm’s chairman, Thomas Cerabino, said in a statement.
Through executive action, Trump has punished law firms with deep ties to the Democratic Party and officials who have hounded him through legal and other means in recent years. Earlier this month, the president signed an executive order stripping attorneys at Perkins Coie LLP of security clearances. Perkins Coie was the Clinton-aligned law firm at the center of the Russia collusion conspiracy that undermined Trump’s first term in office.
The president has also banned certain law firms from accessing federal buildings and barred federal agencies from contracting with them. For some high-powered firms, the severe reduction in access and work from the federal government represents an existential threat.
Federal judges have stepped in to blunt some of Trump’s actions. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, an Obama appointee, has frozen Trump’s action against Perkins Coie after the firm sued.
Other law firms have agreed to similar deals with the White House. Paul Weiss also made commitments to the Trump administration in exchange for avoiding sanctions, including $40 million in pro bono work for causes agreed on with the White House.
