Cutting Deals With Trump: Some Law Firms Win, Others Lose

We're starting to see the impact of a string of deals reached over the last two months between President Donald Trump and top law firms. Some firms appear to be moving on—and even thriving—after pledging hundreds of millions of dollars in free legal services on causes backed by the White House to avoid punitive executive orders like those Trump has lobbed at others. At least three firms that made deals are primed to cash in on Saudi Arabia's plan to invest $1 trillion in the US, thanks to their ties to a leading sovereign wealth fund: Latham & Watkins, A&O Sherman, and Kirkland & Ellis. Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft, meanwhile, is seeing the downside of doing a deal with Trump. A string of partners have headed for the exit since the firm's agreement with Trump was announced, including some who left because of their opposition to the deal. Justin Henry joins fellow Bloomberg Law reporter Roy Strom on this episode of our podcast, On The Merits, to talk about these two developments and about why it's still too soon to say whether law firms that acquiesced to the president made the right move. Do you have feedback on this episode of On The Merits? Give us a call and leave a voicemail at 703-341-3690.