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Over the last few months, the president has taken aim at major law firms around the U.S.
The president has accused these firms of things like “undermining democratic elections,” and his EEOC has sent letters spelling out “concerns” around their DEI practices. Notably, the firms under scrutiny have been at odds with Trump in the past or worked for Democrats.
As a result, many firms have agreed to offer free legal services to the president. Nine firms have pledged a total of $940 million in free legal work thus far.
But not all the associates at these firms are thrilled with those arrangements. Rachel Cohen, for example, quit Skadden Arps in March after the firm announced it would commit at least $100 million in pro bono legal work for causes the Trump administration supports.
“I felt the firm was on the wrong side of history,” she says.
She’s not alone. More than 80 alumni from Skadden sent a letter to the firm’s executive partner, Jeremy London, calling the firm’s decision “outrageous and self-interested.” Some student groups, such as one at Georgetown Law School, are canceling networking events with Skadden over similar concerns. Skadden did not respond to Fortune’s requests for comment.
Some other law firms targeted by Trump, like Susman Godfrey, are pushing back on the administration. But Cohen tells Fortune she’s afraid that not enough are willing to do so, and that the result will be an erosion of the law and the sanctity of the judicial system.
“It seems like the country is moving towards kangaroo courts, and I'm certainly not going to commit myself to the practice of law as a full-time job until I see how things unfold,” she says.
Read more about the conflict between Trump and major law firms here.
Brit Morse
brit.morse@fortune.com
