In February, President Donald Trump started signing a series of executive orders and presidential memorandums against individual “Big Law” firms, accusing them of engaging in “conduct detrimental to critical American interests” and directing federal agency heads to review and scrutinize security clearances and any government contracts, as well as barring attorneys from government buildings.

These targeted executive orders — and the looming threat of more to come —  ultimately triggered several major American firms to quickly agree to provide tens of millions of dollars in pro bono legal work aligned with the administration’s priorities.

In our fifth episode this season, we look at what this means for Big Law, the $340 million of pledged pro bono legal work on Trump’s behalf and which firms are fighting back in the courts.

Special guests:

• Scott Cummings, law professor at UCLA School of Law
• Claire Finkelstein, law professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

This episode was produced by Kirk McDaniel. Intro music by The Dead Pens.

Editorial staff is Ryan Abbott, Sean Duffy and Jamie Ross.