President Donald Trump issued an executive order Tuesday targeting Chicago law firm Jenner & Block. The firm also has an office in Washington, D.C.
Jenner and Block has been an active part of the legal challenges against Mr. Trump’s executive orders, including successfully securing a preliminary injunction against an order from the administration that reduced health care access for transgender youth.
That case is still pending in a Maryland-based federal court.
This executive order instructs officials to review and revoke firm members’ security clearance, identify any good, property, material and services provided by the federal government and stop providing them, terminate any government contracts that may exist with the law firm, and not hire any employees of the firm for any future federal government jobs.
The order also singles out attorney Andrew Weissman, who worked on Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. The executive order says he was re-hired at Jenner & Block, but the firm clarified that Weissman hasn’t worked there since 2021.
The executive order specifies that Weissman is prohibited from being hired by or working for the federal government unless a waiver is issued.
The Trump administration has targeted a number of law firms that have been active in challenging or pausing executive orders and policies in the courts.
Previously, the president issued and then rescinded an executive order targeting international law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Garrison & Wharton after it pledged to review its hiring practices and provide tens of millions of dollars in free legal services to support certain White House initiatives.
A spokesperson for Jenner & Block responded to the order in a statement, writing in part, “Today, we have been named in an Executive Order similar to one which has already been declared unconstitutional by a federal court. We remain focused on serving and safeguarding our clients’ interests with the dedication, integrity, and expertise that has defined our firm for more than one hundred years and will pursue all appropriate remedies.”
