Law firms urge appeals court to keep blocking Trump's sanctions against them

Attorney Paul Clement makes a statement outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, Dec. 2, 2019. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s efforts to sanction some of the nation’s most prestigious law firms “strike at the heart of the rule of law” and must remain blocked by the courts, an attorney for law firms told a panel of appellate judges on Thursday.

A three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit also heard arguments from a government attorney who urged them to reverse lower-court decisions in favor of four law firms. The panel didn’t specify how or when it would rule after Thursday’s two-hour hearing.

Paul Clement, who represented the law firms, said Trump impermissibly punished the firms because of their relationships with clients and attorneys who “raised the president’s ire.”

“The executive orders here strike at the heart of the First Amendment and the ability of lawyers to zealously represent their clients,” he said. “Lawyers cannot zealously represent their clients while walking on eggshells for fear of reprisals.”