WASHINGTON — The Article III Project (A3P) filed an amicus curiae brief on Wednesday in the U.S. Supreme Court supporting John C. Eastman's petition for certiorari in Eastman v. State Bar of California. The brief urges the Court to take the case and reverse California's decision to revoke Eastman's law license. A3P argues that the decision punishes him for his political allegiances and for his work representing President Donald Trump.
The brief contends that the Court has consistently rejected ideological tests for bar membership, and that California's proceedings against Eastman have "all the hallmarks of an ideological purge." It points out that the California tribunals recognized Eastman's good character, his lack of any prior discipline, and his cooperation with the investigation. Yet they still recommended disbarment, and they faulted him for refusing to recant his legal positions. A3P argues that this is the enforcement of "favored ideological orthodoxy." The brief also notes that Eastman was disbarred while Donald Segretti, who pleaded guilty to three federal crimes and served six months in prison, was only suspended. Eastman has never been charged with a crime.
Also in the brief, A3P warns that if the Court denies review, "the results are predictable and ugly." State bars would feel free to go after the law licenses of their political opponents, and lawyers across the country would be pressured to soften their advocacy in politically charged cases. The brief says the practice has "escalated dramatically in the last decade."
"The state bar of California disbarred John Eastman for the cause he served and the client he represented, and everyone in America knows it," said Mike Davis, founder and president of the Article III Project. "California's own judges admitted he is a lawyer of good character, then punished him for refusing to recant his beliefs. That is not legal ethics, but a political purge in a black robe. The Supreme Court has said for decades that a state cannot strip a lawyer of his license for his beliefs, whether he is a Communist, a civil rights lawyer, or a lawyer for President Trump. If the Court lets California get away with this, the Left will weaponize every bar association in the country against every conservative lawyer who dares to take on a hard case. The Court must step in now and make clear that the bar is not the place for ideological warfare."
The Article III Project (A3P) was founded by veteran GOP operative and attorney Mike Davis, who, after helping win the Senate confirmation battles of Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, developed the reputation as a “take-no-prisoners conservative eager to challenge the left with hardball tactics,” as reported in The New York Times.
The Article III Project (A3P) supports constitutionalist lawyers, judges, and other government officials. We fight for the security of our borders, the security of our elections, and the security of our God-given, inalienable rights. Davis previously served as Chief Counsel for Nominations to Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary and led the Senate confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh and a record number of circuit court judges.
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