Judge rejects DOJ bid to disqualify Susman Godfrey as ABA counsel in law firm executive order suit

Key points

• Judge Amir H. Ali denied the government's motion to disqualify Susman Godfrey in American Bar Association v. Executive Office of the President.Bloomberg LawU.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CourtListener RECAP)
• The Justice Department argued Susman was a "central player" whose lawyers were material fact witnesses because an executive order targeted the firm.U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CourtListener RECAP)
• Ali found the government conceded it could not identify any Susman lawyer likely to be a necessary witness at trial under D.C. Rule 3.7(a).U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CourtListener RECAP)
• The order says Rule 3.7 restricts individual lawyers, not firms, and imputes disqualification only through the conflict rules in Rules 1.7 and 1.9.U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CourtListener RECAP)
• None of the ABA's Susman lawyers represented the firm in its own executive-order challenge or in responding to government subpoenas, the court found.U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CourtListener RECAP)
• Susman won a permanent injunction against the order targeting it in 2025; the government's appeal, No. 25-5310, is pending in the D.C. Circuit.U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CourtListener RECAP)

Sources2 articles across 2 outlets

• Bloomberg Law

  • Court Denies Bid to End Susman ABA Representation in Trump SuitOct. 17, 2026

• U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (CourtListener RECAP)

  • Memorandum Opinion and Order, American Bar Association v. Executive Office of the President, No. 25-cv-01888 (ECF No. 86)Oct. 16, 2026

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