ATLANTA — A prominent law firm hired by Republican lawmakers to defend the federal ban on gay marriage ban said Monday it was withdrawing from the case amid criticism by advocacy groups, prompting the partner leading the work to quit his job there.
King & Spalding chairman Robert Hays Jr. said in a statement that he decided to withdraw the Atlanta-based firm from work representing the Defense of Marriage Act after determining the decision to take the case wasn't vetted properly.
The decision was quickly followed by the resignation of Paul Clement, an attorney with the firm who was retained by House Republican leaders after President Barack Obama's administration directed the Justice Department to stop defending the law in court.
Clement, a former U.S. solicitor general, said his personal views on the law are irrelevant. But he argued that a law firm shouldn't abandon a client in the face of criticism, saying that "defending unpopular positions is what lawyers do."
"Much has been said about being on the wrong side of history. But being on the right or wrong side of history on the merits is a question for the clients," said Clement, who is based in Washington. "When it comes to the lawyers, the surest way to be on the wrong side of history is to abandon a client in the face of hostile criticism."
Clement said in the letter that he is moving to a different firm, Bancroft PLLC, and will keep working on the case for House leaders. House Speaker John Boehner's spokesman said the move will "ensure the constitutionality of this law is appropriately determined by the courts, rather than by the President unilaterally."
The law firm's decision to drop the case came a day before advocacy groups planned a rally at the firm's Atlanta headquarters to protest its involvement. Those groups said they were particularly stung that the firm, known for supporting gay rights and recruiting gay employees, was involved in defending the ban.
"Many of us were stunned, shocked and angered when it became known that King & Spalding had taken on this case, and we are gratefully relieved to find out they had withdrawn," said Jeff Graham, the executive director of the gay rights group Georgia Equality. "The legal case is something that is really a thinly veiled political attack on gay and lesbian couples and families."
Jon Davidson, the legal director of the gay-rights group Lambda Legal, said King & Spalding's "sense of justice got the better of them – and that's good news for all of us."
In a nod to Clement's statement, he said: "We welcome the firm back to the right side of history."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20110425/us-gay-marriage-attorneys/
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