It’s a curious phenomenon of the law. The bigger the client and the bigger the law firm, the less likely one really knows what the other is doing. Take the business of pro bono publico (for the public’s benefit) representation, or “pro bono” in legal jargon. Lawyers — yes, even lawyers — want to perform charitable acts. So many lawyers and many law firms donate a portion of their time every year to represent those who cannot afford representation. They still get paid because their law firms are getting paid for the rest of their work and the work of the lawyers who aren’t doing their pro bono turn.
So the law firms' other clients are picking up the tab for the pro bono work, and many take pride in what their lawyers do. But one wonders what clients would think of their lawyers doing pro bono work for terrorists?
According to a Defense Department source, a long list of some of the nation’s largest law firms — some who represent Fortune 500 companies and some who represent 9-11 families — are doing pro bono work for terrorist detainees held at
Allen & Overy
Baker & MacKenzie
Carleton, Fields
Bingham, McCutcheon
Blank
Bondurant, Mixson & Elmore
Burke, McPheeters, Bordner
Burns & Levinson
Cleary, Gottleib Steen
Clifford Chance
Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld
Davis, Wright, Tremaine
Debevoise & Plimpton
Dechert
Dickstein Shapiro
Dorsey & Whitney
Esdaile, Barrett & Esdaile
Foley Hoag
Fredrikson & Byron
Freedman, Boyd, Daniels
Fulbright & Jaworski
Garvey, Schubert Barer
Gibbons, Del Deo and Dolan
Holland & Hart
Hunton & Williams
Jenner & Block
Keller & Heckman
Kramer, Levin, Neftalis
Lavin, O’Neal, Ricci
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips
Mayer, Brown, Rowe
McCarter & English
McDade Fogler
Moore & Van Allen
Nixon Peabody
O’Riordan
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind
Pepper
Perkins Coie
Rodgers, Powers & Schwartz
Ruprecht, Hart & Weeks
Schnader, Harrison, Segal
Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt
Shearman & Sterling
Shook, Hardy Bacon
Simpson, Thatcher & Bartlett
Stradley, Ronon, Stevens
Sullivan & Cromwell
Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan
Venable
Weil, Gotshal & Manges
Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering
Most of these law firms are — or were, before the Graham amendment — litigating habeas corpus cases seeking the release of Gitmo detainees. That is, they have been working for the release of enemy combatants, trying to extend to them one of the key rights Americans have under the Constitution, and which those detainees wish so fervently to deny us. I wonder how many of the clients of these firms – and among the partners of these firms — know what their lawyers and partners are doing. And how much they are paying for it.
Pro bono publico? So who’s the publico they’re benefiting?