House asserts bar associations' First Amendment rights, says AG's Honors Program should be reinstated
The House also called for changes in President Donald Trump’s Jan. 21 executive order that encouraged the government and private sector to end “illegal preferences and discrimination.” (Image from Shutterstock)
The federal government should not investigate or prosecute bar associations for activities protected by the First Amendment, including advocating for or implementing diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility policies, the ABA House of Delegates said Monday.
The House, which convened at the ABA Midyear Meeting in Phoenix, also called for changes in President Donald Trump’s Jan. 21 executive order that encouraged the government and private sector to end “illegal preferences and discrimination.” The changes would clarify that the order won’t be enforced against bar associations or others in ways that infringe their First Amendment rights.
“The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is not a set of words; it is a cornerstone of our democracy, granting freedom of speech and association,” said Jalicha Persad, a delegate from the Virgin Islands Bar Association, who introduced Resolution 402. “This freedom protects not only individuals but the bar association to endorse, promote, advocate for and implement DEIA policies.”
In his executive order, Trump declared that “influential institutions of American society” are using “dangerous, demeaning and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called ‘diversity, equity and inclusion’ (DEI) or ‘diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility’ (DEIA) that can violate the civil rights laws of this nation.”
The order tasked federal agencies with identifying up to nine entities for possible civil compliance investigations, including large nonprofits and state and local bar associations.
The order said the First Amendment protects the speech of certain groups, such as higher education institutions. But according to the resolution’s report, it did not expressly acknowledge that state and local bar associations also have the right under the First Amendment to advocate for or implement diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility policies.
“I don’t think we should change our mission for fear of prosecution,” said Persad, adding that Resolution 402 directly advances the ABA’s mission.
“Each of us brings a wealth of individual experiences to this table,” she said. “It is our diverse experiences shaped by varied backgrounds and perspectives that enable us to effectively collaborate and debate resolutions impacting our profession. … Our strengths lie in our differences. We must not do anything to diminish it.”
Follow along with the ABA Journal’s coverage of the 2025 ABA Midyear Meeting here.
Call to reinstate Attorney General’s Honors Program
The House on Monday also responded to the Department of Justice’s abrupt move to revoke recent job offers from the Attorney General’s Honors Program.
Resolution 403 urges the executive branch to reinstate the Honors Program and other honors or fellowship programs designed for entry-level attorneys. It also urges the executive branch to reinstate summer internships for individuals who accepted offers before Jan. 20 but whose offers were rescinded because of the federal hiring freeze.
“[Resolution] 403 is important for fairness, integrity, training future public service attorneys and to support our young lawyers,” said Tom Bolt, a delegate from the Virgin Islands Bar Association, who introduced the resolution.
President Donald Trump imposed the freeze on the hiring of federal civil employees shortly after his inauguration. On Jan. 22, the DOJ rescinded all offers to the Attorney General’s Honors Program, citing the hiring freeze.
The DOJ established the Attorney General’s Honors Program in 1953 to help recruit entry-level lawyers. According to the resolution’s report, the program hires more than 100 lawyers for term-limited positions each year. Some lawyers later receive full-time employment offers.
Resolution 403 additionally urges legal employers, bar associations, law schools and others in the legal profession to assist law students and young lawyers whose employment offers were rescinded because of the federal hiring freeze.
Resolution 402 and Resolution 403 were overwhelmingly adopted. They were submitted by the Virgin Islands Bar Association.
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