by
Win
McNamee/Getty
Images)
The
Trump
II
reign
has
been
characterized
by
repeated attacks
on
the
rule
of
law and
blatant
power
grabs.
And
Biglaw
has
proven…
it
is
not
up
to
the
task.
When
directly
confronted with unconstitutional Executive
Orders
targeting
firms
on
Trump’s
list
for
retribution,
more
than
twice
as
many
major
law
firms
were
willing
to
promise
the
president
nearly
a
billion
dollars
in pro
bono
payola for conservative
causes
or
clients as
were
willing
to
fight
the
EOs
in
court.
Not
a
great
look
for
the
supposed
best
in
the
legal
industry.
But,
that
doesn’t
mean
we’re
completely
screwed
as
a
society.
Small
law
and
boutiques
have
stepped
up,
and
these
small
but
mighty
firms
are
poised
to
take
on
some
of
the
biggest
cases.
And
that
includes
the
Washington
Litigation
Group,
a
nonprofit
firm
created
earlier
this
year.
As Nathaniel
Zelinsky,
senior
counsel
at
the
Washington
Litigation
Group,
said,
“Every
day,
we
have
incoming
requests
of
people
who
need
representation,
and
we
can
take
on
some,
and
we
try
to
identify
the
ones
that
fit
within
our
core
mission…but
there
is
an
extraordinary
need
right
now
for
qualified
representation
and
to
make
sure
that
we’re
putting
forward
the
best
representation
in
the
most
important
cases.”
“We
take
on
cases
that
are
sort
of
core
to
the
rule
of
law.
So
we
defend
individuals,
institutions
who
are
under
attack,
and
we
combat
government
overreach,
but
we
are
at
our
core
lawyers,”
said
Zelinsky.
“Our
pedigree
is
really
people
from
[the]
government
and
people
in
private
practice.”
The
firm
was
created
by
a
mix
a
Biglaw
partners,
former
judges,
and
government
attorneys.
The
firm’s
website
touts
the
unique
pedigree
of
its
attorneys:
-
A
former
Acting
Attorney
General
of
the
United
States,
and
two
former
Deputy
Assistant
Attorneys
General. -
Multiple
former
Assistant
United
States
Attorneys. -
Defense
attorneys
who
have
represented
clients
from
Watergate
onward. -
Multiple
former
law
firm
partners,
including
the
head
of
a
national
white-collar
defense
practice,
the
head
of
a
prominent
Supreme
Court
and
Appellate
Practice,
and
the
head
of
a
national
law
firm’s
D.C.
office. -
Former
judges
who
served
on
the
United
States
District
Court
for
the
District
of
Columbia
and
the
District
of
Columbia
Superior
Court. -
Lawyers
who
have
argued
at
every
level
of
the
federal
judiciary,
including
before
the
Supreme
Court.
And
the
firm
is
growing.
It
recently
added
Kyle
Freeny,
a
Greenberg
Traurig
partner
who
previously
worked
on
Special
Counsel
Robert
Mueller’s
team
—
and
prosecuted
Paul
Manafort
in
that
role.
Her
experience
jives
well
with
the
high-profile
cases
its
taking
on,
as
reported
by
Law.com:
The
firm
has
already
taken
on
several
high-profile
cases,
including
representing
former
Merit
Systems
Protection
Board
member
Cathy
Harris,
who
was
fired
by
Trump
earlier
this
year,
serving
as
co-counsel
with
Milbank.
The
firm
also represents three
members
of
the
Federal
Oversight
and
Management
Board
for
Puerto
Rico
that
were
fired
by
Trump,
along
with
Cooley
and
Democracy
Defenders
Fund
as
co-counsel.
Zelinsky
notes
the
firm
will
continue
its
growth
in
the
“near-term
future.”
Which
checks
out
—
there’s
certainly
not
a
lack
of
work
fighting
the
Trump
administration.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].