Perkins
Coie
secured
a
temporary
restraining
order
against
the
enforcement
of
the
most
egregious
provisions
of
the
executive
order
that
targeted
the
firm.
That’s
great
news
for
them,
but
the
firm
isn’t
out
of
the
woods
yet.
During
the
TRO
hearing,
Perkins
Coie’s
attorney,
Dane
Butswinkas
of
Williams
&
Connolly,
noted
the
firm
has
lost
clients
every
day
since
the
the
EO
was
issued.
He
said
the
EO
“truly
is
life-threatening.
It
will
spell
the
end
of
the
law
firm.” (Interesting
side
note
on
Butswinkas,
before
returning
to
Biglaw
he
was
the
general
counsel
at
Tesla
—
W&C
described
the
work
as
“assisting
Elon
Musk
and
Tesla,
Inc.,”
which
adds
just
another
level
to
this
story.)
The
potential
client
issues
are
likely
to
continue
for
Perkins
Coie,
despite
the
clear
legal
victory.
The
impulse
to
obey
in
advance
is
prevalent
in
corporate
America,
and,
while
they
may
like
Perkins
Coie
as
their
attorneys,
clients
may
not
want
to
capture
the
attention
of
the
(notably
vindictive)
president.
As
former
Wachtell
partner
George
Conway
told
Bloomberg
Law,
“It
was
essential
that
Perkins
Coie
win
this,
but
the
problem
is
everyone
in
the
government
knows
that
the
president
does
not
like
this
particular
law
firm.”
He
continued,
“People
know
if
they
work
with
Perkins
Coie,
they
will
earn
the
displeasure
of
the
White
House.”
Janet
Stanton,
partner
at
Adam
Smith,
Esq.,
echoed
the
sentiment,
“The
issue
is
that
clients
are
spooked.
And
the
lawyers
must
react
to
that.”
As
Judge
Beryl
Howell
noted
during
the
TRO
hearing,
the
legal
profession
was
“watching
in
horror”
at
what’s
happening
to
Perkins
Coie.
Because
the
ramifications
of
the
EO
are
pretty
extensive.
John
Morley,
a
Yale
Law
professor
who
studies
the
industry
said,
“This
isn’t
like
an
ordinary
business
where
it
can
go
through
a
few
lean
years
and
come
out
as
something
smaller.
Law
firms
aren’t
like
that.
They’re
very
fragile.”
So,
as
the
firm
says,
the
TRO
is
“an
important
first
step
in
ensuring
this
unconstitutional
Executive
Order
is
never
enforced.”
But
the
firm
still
faces
an
uphill
climb.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].