Three senior congressional Democrats — Representative Jamie Raskin, Senator Richard Blumenthal, and Senator Adam Schiff — have written to Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom seeking documents about the arrangement the firm struck with the White House to avoid an executive order that could have severely damaged its business. Skadden pledged $100 million in free legal work on causes the president favors, and was later linked to Commerce Department work through Trump’s personal attorney. The lawmakers also want the firm to address whether it had a conflict of interest while advising Intel as the administration took a 10 percent stake in the chipmaker. Because they are in the minority, the Democrats have no power to compel a response, and earlier requests along these lines produced little.

The letter is effectively a preview of what the lawmakers say they would pursue with subpoena power after the midterms: why firms agreed to the deals, what the deals required, what work was performed for the administration, whether firms turned away clients out of fear of retaliation, and what conflicts resulted. Blumenthal said he would want testimony under oath from the former Paul Weiss chairman who was the first to reach such an agreement, and suggested departed attorneys from the firm could serve as sources. Nine firms in total made deals, committing roughly a billion dollars in pro bono work, while four contested the orders in court and won. The article notes the Justice Department has separately subpoenaed firm leaders and demanded documents in connection with an American Bar Association lawsuit over the administration’s treatment of law firms.

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