DOJ flip-flops again in fight against Democratic-linked law firms

The Justice Department told four large law firms—Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr; Perkins Coie; Jenner & Block; and Susman Godfrey—that it would drop lawsuits against them, only to reverse hours later and say it would continue pursuing the appeals over Trump-era executive orders restricting the firms’ access and activities. The back-and-forth follows anger from Trump and aides and underscores a broader fight over whether firms tied to Democrats can push back in court, even as the firms had won lower-court challenges and as critics condemn the reversal as political retaliation.