• About Us
    • Fact Checking Policy
    • Ownership & funding information
    • Volunteer
  • Subscribe
  • Letter submission
    • Submissions Policy
  • Contact Us
The Online Citizen Asia
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Singapore
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
    • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Politics
    • Civil Society
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
No Result
View All Result
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Singapore
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
    • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Politics
    • Civil Society
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
No Result
View All Result
The Online Citizen Asia
No Result
View All Result

Trump election lawyers on trial in court of public opinion

by The Online Citizen
13/11/2020
in International, Politics
Reading Time: 4 mins read
4

by Charlotte Plantive

Written in giant capital letters, it’s nearly impossible to miss the message emblazoned along a San Francisco street: “Jones Day: Hands off our ballots.”

The Jones Day law firm on the receiving end of the painted directive is working on US President Donald Trump’s legal crusade against the outcome of last week’s presidential election.

The outgoing president and most Republican allies have so far refused to recognize the win of Democratic President-elect Joe Biden, decrying massive “fraud” and launching a dozen complaints in several key states.

But the judicial fight is lacking one important element: any evidence pointing to such fraud.

That fact has put the lawyers of Jones Day and other firms involved in a bind, with political activists and legal colleagues alike accusing them of undermining democracy.

The anti-Trump Republican group The Lincoln Project denounced Jones Day and Porter Wright — another law firm assisting Trump’s effort — on Twitter.

“Employees of @JonesDay & @PorterWright, do you believe your law firms should be attempting to overturn the will of the American people?”

And even other attorneys have challenged their peers’ involvement.

“The deeper they venture down the Trump conspiracy rabbit hole, armed with nothing more than futile lawsuits premised on flimsy evidentiary or legal bases, the more their professional reputations and law licenses are at risk,” lawyers Bradley Moss and Joanne Molinaro warned in an opinion piece in The Atlantic.

‘Frivolous’

The American Bar Association’s code of ethics prohibits lawyers from bringing “frivolous” assertions — claims without legal merit or evidence — before a court, according to Joshua Davis at the Center for Law and Ethics at the University of San Francisco.

“A lot of these (Trump election) cases… seem to come very close to the line and maybe cross the line into being frivolous,” according to Davis.

It is rare, however, for judges or bars to impose sanctions for violating this standard, and Davis told AFP it is unlikely they would want to insert themselves into “that sort of a political mess” now.

Fordham University law professor Bruce Green has a different dispute with the cases.

“I think the real criticism is not so much that they’re frivolous,” he said, “but that they’re not going to prevail.”

“And even if they prevail, they wouldn’t change the election result,” Green said, noting that the lawyers were likely motivated by their allegiance to the Republicans, with their work boosting the party’s fundraising efforts amid the polarizing legal battle.

That doesn’t mean those motives can’t be questioned, Green said.

“Why are they using their professional talent on these cases, rather than something more worthy of their time and abilities?” he asked.

“But that’s not a legal question.”

‘Ideological sympathies’

The two firms have defended their positions.

“Porter Wright has a long history of election law work during which we have represented Democratic, Republican and independent campaigns and issues,” it told AFP in an email.

In a statement, Jones Day explained the firm is not involved “in any litigation alleging voter fraud,” but simply representing the Pennsylvania Republican Party in “an important and recurring rule-of-law question under the US Constitution” relating to mail-in ballots.

Pennsylvania is a linchpin in Trump’s efforts to cast doubt on the electoral process — and where courts are reviewing many Democratic voters’ choice to mail in their ballots due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Several Jones Day lawyers have served in the Trump administration, including former White House legal advisor Don McGahn.

And the firm has donated more than $4 million to the Republican Party this year, according to the Federal Election Commission.

“I don’t think it’s money,” Stephen Gillers, a legal ethics professor at New York University, speculated. “(Jones Day) does not need this business.”

“I think some of what it does may be driven, in part, by ideological sympathies on the part of the lawyers,” he said, given some partners’ relationship to the Republican Party.

Their work on the case is “perfectly legal and ethical,” he said.

“The problem that Jones Day faces is that it can hurt its reputation,” Gillers said, noting that clients or potential hires may be turned off after this episode.

Trump’s legal battles on this front are unusual — and for some, alarming — in a country accustomed to mostly smooth transfers of power, even between political rivals.

But, “there are 1.3 million lawyers in the United States,” Gillers said. “If Jones Day turned down the work, another firm would accept it.”

– AFP

For just US$7.50 a month, sign up as a subscriber on The Online Citizen Asia (and enjoy ads-free experience on our site) to support our mission to transform TOC into an alternative mainstream press.
Source: AFP
Tags: AFP

Related Posts

WHO panel in talks on COVID emergency status
AFP

WHO panel in talks on COVID emergency status

27/01/2023
Chinese property giant Evergrande under ‘tremendous pressure’
China

Chinese property giant Evergrande under ‘tremendous pressure’

14/09/2021
Australia’s capital Canberra to enter virus lockdown
Health

Virus lockdown extended for Australia’s capital

14/09/2021
Messenger RNA COVID vaccines 66% effective against Delta: US study
Health

UK to vaccinate over 12s against COVID

14/09/2021
Politics

Facebook shields VIPs from some of its rules: report

14/09/2021
Malaysian PM, opposition in deal to boost stability
Malaysia

Malaysian PM, opposition in deal to boost stability

14/09/2021
Subscribe
Connect withD
Login
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
Notify of
Connect withD
I allow to create an account
When you login first time using a Social Login button, we collect your account public profile information shared by Social Login provider, based on your privacy settings. We also get your email address to automatically create an account for you in our website. Once your account is created, you'll be logged-in to this account.
DisagreeAgree
4 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments

Latest posts

WHO panel in talks on COVID emergency status

WHO panel in talks on COVID emergency status

27/01/2023

Two years after Myanmar coup, UN says situation ‘catastrophic’

27/01/2023
Grab driver supposedly earned $5,227.82 in a week prior CNY, netizens voice worries over his health

Grab driver supposedly earned $5,227.82 in a week prior CNY, netizens voice worries over his health

27/01/2023
Philippines to appeal ICC resumption of drug war probe

ICC grants new inquiry into Manila’s deadly ‘war on drugs’

27/01/2023
Minister refutes claims of Malaysia consulting Singapore on housing policy due to its inefficient civil service

Minister refutes claims of Malaysia consulting Singapore on housing policy due to its inefficient civil service

27/01/2023
457 civil society organizations call on ASEAN to move beyond the Five-Point Consensus

Myanmar junta sets out tough new rules for political parties

27/01/2023
Thai ruling party names deputy PM as main election candidate

Thai ruling party names deputy PM as main election candidate

27/01/2023
Mrs Teo says SG continues to invest in training local talent while MNCs transfer staff to work in SG

Mrs Teo says SG continues to invest in training local talent while MNCs transfer staff to work in SG

27/01/2023

Trending posts

Two Indian nationals paid about S$330 and S$730 respectively for forged certificates submitted in their S-Pass application

MOM found issuing EPs meant for foreign PMETs to PRC waitress and general worker

by Correspondent
26/01/2023
35

...

Ho Ching breaks silence over Temasek’s write down of its US$275 million investment in FTX, says it “can afford to be contrarian”

US regulator questions VCs’ due diligence work prior to investing in FTX; Ho Ching says Temasek can afford to be contrarian

by The Online Citizen
24/01/2023
28

...

Indian rupee falls 60% since signing of CECA while Singapore becomes top investor in India

by Correspondent
25/01/2023
53

...

Earning only S$400 a month, delivery-rider turned hawker threw in the towel after two years of running a rojak stall

Earning only S$400 a month, delivery-rider turned hawker threw in the towel after two years of running a rojak stall

by Yee Loon
26/01/2023
22

...

Temasek and GIC reportedly in talks with Adani Group accused of “brazen” market manipulation and accounting fraud

Temasek and GIC reportedly in talks with Adani Group accused of “brazen” market manipulation and accounting fraud

by The Online Citizen
26/01/2023
46

...

Trump election lawyers on trial in court of public opinion

by The Online Citizen
13/11/2020
4

...

November 2020
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
30  
« Oct   Dec »
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
  • Letter submission
  • Contact Us

© 2006 - 2021 The Online Citizen

No Result
View All Result
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Commentaries
    • Comments
  • Current Affairs
    • Malaysia
    • Indonesia
    • China
    • ASEAN
    • Asia
    • International
  • Finance
    • Economics
    • Labour
    • Property
    • Business
  • Community
    • Civil Society
    • Arts & Culture
    • Consumer Watch
    • NGO
  • Politics
    • Parliament
    • Transport
    • Education
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Housing
  • Law & Order
    • Legislation
    • Court Cases
  • Lifestyle
    • Travel
  • Subscribers login

© 2006 - 2021 The Online Citizen

wpDiscuz