A lawyer at Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom who helped coordinate an open letter calling on the leaders of US law firms to speak out against the Trump administration's efforts “aimed at dismantling rule-of-law norms” has given her conditional notice to the firm.

Rachel Cohen, a Chicago-based associate at Skadden since 2022, revealed the move on LinkedIn today (21 March). She said she had contacted "multiple trusted partners" in the firm's management after President Trump issued an executive order against Perkins Coie on 6 March, but her emails had gone unanswered or received delayed responses.

The Perkins Coie order is part of a move by Trump to target law firms that he maintains have supported efforts to unfairly prosecute him or help his opponents, alongside a broader effort by his administration to challenge diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies.

The order claimed Perkins Coie, which had previously represented Hillary Clinton, had worked "to judicially overturn popular, necessary, and democratically enacted election laws" and had "discriminatory" DEI policies. 

It stripped security clearances from all Perkins Coie staff and blocked the firm from doing any work with the federal government, potentially a body blow given the frequency with which it interacts with the federal government.

Cohen wrote that she attended internal meetings at Skadden to discuss the matter and that the firm had "been given time and opportunity to do the right thing".

Democrat-leaning Paul Weiss' decision to "cave to the Trump administration" had forced Cohen's hand, she added, referring to a deal the firm struck with Trump after he issued it with a similar executive order to that aimed at Perkins Coie.

News of the deal emerged yesterday (20 March) and followed a meeting between Paul Weiss chair Brad Karp and Trump at the White House.

According to a post on Trump's social networking site Truth Social, the deal includes the firm giving $40m in pro bono services to support his administration's initiatives. The Truth Social post also said Paul Weiss would engage experts “to conduct a comprehensive audit of all of its employment practices” and "will not adopt, use, or pursue any DEI policies", among other commitments.

Karp was quoted in the statement saying: “We are gratified that the president has agreed to withdraw the executive order concerning Paul Weiss. We look forward to an engaged and constructive relationship with the president and his administration.”

The DEI crackdown escalated earlier this week when the federal government's US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) wrote to 20 US and international law firms demanding information around hiring, compensation and partnership decisions relating to diversity and warning that their DEI practices may be unlawful.

Lawyers from many of those firms, including Skadden, Kirkland & Ellis, Freshfields and A&O Shearman, are among nearly 800 associates that have so far signed the letter coordinated by Cohen. 

Stating that the signatories are “united in our condemnation of the administration’s intimidation tactics”, the letter notes the lack of public opposition to the measures by law firm leaders.

“Our hope was that our employers, some of the most profitable law firms in the world, would lead the way,” it says. “That has not yet been the case, but it still very much can be.”

The reluctance of major US law firms to speak out against the executive orders has been noted by US media outlets, including Law.com, which reported that “some firms were gathering signatures for an amicus brief [in relation to the Perkins Coie order], but there are lingering doubts whether it will come together”.

However, the American Bar Association (ABA) has issued statements condemning criticism of judges by administration officials and accusing Trump of punishing law firms because of whom they represent.

And earlier this week, 18 national and international professional bodies, including the Commonwealth Lawyers Association and the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute, issued a joint statement condemning "the recent targeting of legal professionals by the US government".

Cohen wrote that her notice could be revoked should Skadden "come up with a satisfactory response to the current moment", including committing to "broad future representation, regardless of whether powerful people view it as adverse to them". The firm must also refuse to cooperate with the EEOC's request for information, which she wrote was "clearly targeted at intimidating non-white employees".

Skadden did not respond to a request for comment.