A federal judge has struck down the executive order targeting Susman Godfrey, the fourth time a judge has deemed US President Donald Trump’s orders against law firms unconstitutional and barred their enforcement.

US District Court Judge Loren AliKhan said on Friday (27 June) the order targeting Susman violated the US Constitution and must be permanently enjoined.

“The court concludes that the order constitutes unlawful retaliation against Susman for activities that are protected by the First Amendment, including its representation of certain clients, its donations to certain causes and its expression of its beliefs regarding diversity,” AliKhan wrote.  

The judge, who sits on the US District Court for the District of Columbia, added: “Whether the executive is operating as a sovereign, contractor, landlord or employer, it must comply with the Constitution. And as defendants’ counsel conceded at argument, the mere fact that the government has the right to exercise discretion does not immunise retaliatory intent.”

Susman Godfrey applauded the ruling in a statement. 

“The court’s ruling is a resounding victory for the rule of law and the right of every American to be represented by legal counsel without fear of retaliation,” the firm said. “We applaud the court for declaring the administration’s order unconstitutional... We are also deeply appreciative of those who supported us in this lawsuit, including our superb legal team at Munger, Tolles & Olson and the thousands of lawyers, former judges, law professors and law students who submitted amicus briefs.”

The ruling was broadly similar to those by colleagues Judge John Bates, Judge Beryl Howell and Judge Richard Leon that threw out executive orders against Jenner & Block, Perkins Coie and WilmerHale in separate rulings last month.

The firms have been targeted by Trump as part of a broader campaign against law firms 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 policies.

The order against Susman Godfrey claimed the firm “spearheads efforts to weaponise the American legal system and degrade the quality of American elections”. 

In 2023, the firm secured a $787.5m settlement for Dominion Voting Systems in a landmark defamation lawsuit against Fox News over false claims the network aired about Dominion’s involvement in an alleged plot to steal the 2020 election. 

The firm has also pursued a defamation case on Dominion’s behalf against MyPillow founder and Trump advocate Mike Lindell over similar allegations. 

Susman sued the Trump administration in April, arguing the order against it, which suspended its lawyers’ security clearances, restricted their access to government buildings and threatened the firm and its clients with the loss of their government contracts, was retaliatory and violated the Constitution. 

The firm hired former US solicitor general Donald Verrilli of Munger Tolles & Olson to represent it in its suit against the administration. 

Nine top law firms firms including Kirkland & Ellis, Latham & Watkins, A&O Shearman, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and Paul Weiss have pledged a total of $940m in free legal work to avoid similar executive orders.