Another law firm has reportedly withdrawn from its participation in lawsuits challenging election results due to a public pressure campaign against the firm and its employees. The decision has met a mixed response, with many celebrating the withdrawal and others questioning whether the precedent could result in law firms becoming more likely to decline or withdraw from cases that involve strong public opinions. In-house counsel in charge of selecting and managing outside counsel may want to consider reviewing their RFP for outside counsel, outside counsel guidelines and engagement letters to see how they address withdrawal issues, as a more muscular approach may be desired to help prevent a company from being left in the lurch in the middle of an important matter.
“Attorneys from the law firm Porter Wright Morris & Arthur withdrew late Thursday from representing the Trump campaign in a federal lawsuit seeking to block the certification of Pennsylvania’s election results, becoming the third law firm to distance itself from the Trump campaign’s post-election lawsuits and coming amid a public pressure campaign….The anti-Trump Lincoln Project has also publicly urged supporters to criticize employees at Porter Wright and another law firm, Jones Day, on LinkedIn for their firm’s work with Trump….Before it withdrew from the Pennsylvania lawsuit, Porter Wright said in a statement Wednesday the firm has a “long history of election law work during which we have represented Democratic, Republican and independent campaigns and issues…At times, this calls for us to take on controversial cases.” “We expect criticism in such instances, and we affirm the right of all individuals to express concern and disagreement,” the firm said, as reported by the Times.”
Read: Law Firm Withdraws From Trump Campaign’s Pennsylvania Lawsuit Amid Pressure at Forbes