VOL. I · OCT. 17, 2026 ● NO. 07 ● FREE SPEECH & THE FIRST AMENDMENT
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After Frederick Douglass, 1847
The free-speech desk — the First Amendment, censorship, and the right to be heard, tracked ruling by ruling across the fifty states.
First Amendment
Judge Voids Executive Order Punishing Law Firm Perkins Coie
A federal court permanently blocked an executive order targeting Perkins Coie, holding that punishing a law firm for its clients and advocacy violates the First Amendment.
The exterior of a downtown law-firm office tower, representing Perkins Coie and the executive order aimed at it. — AI-generated illustration
On May 2, 2025, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell struck down Executive Order 14230, which directed federal agencies to take adverse action against the law firm Perkins Coie. She held the order unconstitutionally retaliated against the firm for its protected speech and associations.
The March 2025 order stripped security clearances, restricted building access and threatened contracts over the firm's past legal work and advocacy. Perkins Coie sued, framing the measure as government retaliation designed to punish disfavored viewpoints and deter zealous representation.
Judge Howell found the order violated the First Amendment's protections for speech and association, along with due-process and right-to-counsel guarantees. She underscored that no prior president had wielded executive power against a law firm in this way.
The ruling was among several rejecting similar orders aimed at law firms, reinforcing that the government cannot use official power to coerce or retaliate against lawyers for their clients or advocacy.
14230
Executive order struck
Let's kill all the lawyers.
— Judge Beryl A. Howell, opening her opinion by quoting Shakespeare, Perkins Coie v. DOJ
Video caption
How the case moved
MAR 2025
President Trump issues Executive Order 14230 targeting Perkins Coie.
MAR 2025
Perkins Coie sues, winning a temporary restraining order.
MAY 2025
Judge Howell permanently enjoins the order as unconstitutional.
✓ Fact check
Claim
“A president can lawfully sanction a private law firm for taking on disfavored clients or causes.”
Reality
The court held such targeting is unconstitutional retaliation that violates the First Amendment rights to speech, association and counsel.
§
Legal References
Bluebook citation · cases, statutes & the record
Primary legal authority cited in this report. Links go to the public record where one exists.
[1]
Perkins Coie LLP v. U.S. Department of Justice, No. 1:25-cv-00716 ¶ source
D.D.C. 2025
¶
Academic References
ABA / law-review style · secondary scholarship
Secondary scholarship that informs the analysis.
[1]
Reference text
Author bio
Source: The First Amendment Encyclopedia
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