U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that five more law firms had agreed to devote a total of at least $600 million in free legal work to causes he supports, marking new concessions offered by major law firms facing a White House pressure campaign.
The agreements mostly mirror others struck with four firms in recent weeks, requiring them to shun diversity-based employment practices the administration deems illegal and work on pro bono projects approved by the president.
Kirkland & Ellis, A&O Shearman, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP and Latham & Watkins LLP are set to provide $125 million in pro bono work each. Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft would provide at least $100 million, Trump said in posts on his Truth Social account.
Today, President Donald J. Trump and Kirkland & Ellis LLP, Allen Overy Shearman Sterling US LLP, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, and Latham & Watkins LLP (the Law Firms) announce the following agreement regarding a series of actions to be taken by the Law Firms:1. The Law Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) April 11, 2025
Spokespeople for the five firms did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In a joint statement shared by Trump, Kirkland, A&O Shearman, Simpson Thacher and Latham said they looked forward to a “continued constructive and productive relationship with President Trump and his team.” The firms said they “resolved this matter while upholding long-held principles important to each of our firms.”
Cadwalader’s managing partner Patrick Quinn said in a statement shared by Trump that the agreement was “consistent with the principles that have guided Cadwalader for over 230 years.”
The agreements follow executive orders that Trump issued against five law firms he accused of “weaponizing” the legal system against him and his allies, citing their ties to his political and legal adversaries or their work on cases he opposes.
The orders restricted their lawyers from accessing government buildings and officials and threatened to cancel federal contracts held by their clients.
Three of the firms, Perkins Coie, WilmerHale and Jenner & Block, have sued over the orders and won rulings that temporarily blocked those provisions, convincing federal judges that they violated constitutional protections for speech and due process. Another, Susman Godfrey, also said it would fight Trump’s order against it.
(With Reuters inputs)