Lawyer Paul Clement addresses colleagues, competitors and others at a party in honor of Clement’s 75th argument before the US Supreme Court in Washington, DC, October 15, 2014. LAWYERS / Reuters / Yuri Gripas
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- Clement and fellow Kirkland and Ellis, Judge Erin Murphy, left Kirkland to set up their own law firm.
- The departure was announced the same day the US Supreme Court lifted New York’s ban on carrying concealed weapons in public
(Reuters) – Prominent law enforcement officials Paul Clement and Erin Murphy said in a statement Thursday that they were leaving Kirkland & Ellis to set up their own small litigation firm shortly after Kirkland said he would no longer represent clients in matters of The second amendment.
The Washington-based couple said they would leave because Kirkland’s decision would affect their long-standing customer relationships.
“The offices in question were approved years ago, and withdrawing from them now would cost clients years of institutional memory,” Murphy said in a statement.
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Kirkland announced the new policy and the departure of the couple hours after the US Supreme Court lifted New York State’s restrictions on carrying concealed pistols in public with a 6-3 ruling.
Clement, a former attorney general, argued the case before the country’s Supreme Court in November on behalf of the State Rifle and Pistol Association in New York.
A Kirkland spokesman declined to comment further on the partner’s departure. Neither Clement nor Murphy responded immediately to requests for comment outside of their statement.
This is not the first time Clement has left a law firm because of his representation of controversial clients.
He left King & Spalding in 2011 after the company withdrew from a lawsuit defending the federal Marriage Protection Act.
At the time, the company was facing criticism from gay rights groups. Clement published a letter criticizing the decision, saying “protecting unpopular positions is what lawyers do.”
Clement then moved to a small law firm, Bancroft, which Kirkland & Ellis acquired in 2016. He represented the National Arms Association on a number of issues, including the successful 2010 2010 anti-gun ban in Chicago.
Read more:
The NRA’s weapons event will draw lawyers to Texas days after the shooting
The US Supreme Court is expanding gun rights, repealing the law in New York
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Karen Sloan
Thomson Reuters
Karen Sloan reports on law firms, law schools and the legal business. Contact her at karen.sloan@thomsonreuters.com
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