Arnon Nampa, a Thai human rights lawyer and pro-democracy activist, has been repeatedly sentenced under Thailand’s lèse-majesté law for peacefully advocating for monarchy reform. As of May 2025, he is serving over 24 years in …
Attacks Against Legal Profession
UN Expert Warns of Political Persecution in Guatemala
A United Nations expert has raised concerns over the growing use of criminal law by Guatemala’s Prosecutor General’s Office to target opponents of the current justice system. Margaret Satterthwaite, the UN Special Rapporteur on the …
American Legal Profession under Attack: Lessons from Abroad
On Law Day 2025, the American Bar Association warned that the U.S. legal profession is facing growing political pressure and retaliation, echoing patterns seen in authoritarian regimes like Belarus and Poland. Judges and lawyers in …
Interview with Scott Cummings (UCLA): Where are the lawyers while Trump attacks democratic institutions?
In a conversation with Amsterdam Law School, Professor Scott Cummings (UCLA) warns that the United States is undergoing severe democratic backsliding during Donald Trump’s second term. According to Cummings, Trump is systematically attacking independent institutions …
NEW POLICY BRIEF: Political Persecution of Judges and Lawyers Is a Global Problem
Freedom House’s new policy brief, Justice in Shackles: The Global Persecution of Judges and Lawyers, documents how repressive governments worldwide are increasingly targeting legal and judicial professionals to undermine the rule of law. Between 2014 …
Why Big Law Firms Aren’t Standing Together Against Trump’s Assault
As President Trump issues executive orders targeting law firms for their past legal work or diversity efforts, most large firms have opted to strike deals rather than push back — a response shaped by the …
Why Attacks on Law Firm Offices are Increasing and What They Should Do About it
In March 2025, Keystone Law’s London headquarters was vandalized by activists due to its representation of U.S. defense contractor Teledyne, which had obtained a court injunction against the protest group Palestine Action. This incident reflects …
Türkiye: Attacks on the Legal Profession Unacceptable
A coalition of international legal and human rights organizations has condemned escalating attacks by Turkish authorities on the Istanbul Bar Association and the broader legal profession. Following the forced removal of the Bar’s elected leadership …
Trump attacks on law firms begin to chill pro bono work on causes he doesn’t like
President Trump’s use of executive orders to punish law firms tied to political opponents has sparked fear across the legal profession, leading some firms to quietly scale back or reject pro bono work on causes …
An attack on the Constitution? Why Trump’s moves to punish law firms are causing alarm
President Trump’s recent wave of executive orders targeting major law firms—beginning with Perkins Coie and followed by Paul Weiss, Jenner & Block, and WilmerHale—has alarmed the legal community, raising fears of political retribution for representing …