The American Bar Association (ABA) has called on the Trump administration to reverse an executive order that mandates federal investigations into diversity and inclusion efforts within bar associations. The ABA argues that such investigations would violate the First Amendment rights of these organizations.
The resolution, passed on Monday, represents the ABA’s first formal opposition to the January 21 executive order, which lists bar associations, medical groups, publicly traded companies, and other private organizations as possible subjects for investigation into diversity programs that might be seen as “illegal discrimination or preferences.”
This call to action comes as the city of Baltimore and three other organizations filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, seeking to block both the diversity-focused executive order and another order aimed at dismantling diversity programs. The lawsuit argues that these orders exceed the president’s constitutional authority.
A report supporting the ABA resolution states that the First Amendment protects bar associations from government interference, particularly when it comes to promoting diversity and inclusion. During the ABA’s meeting in Phoenix, no objections were raised to the resolution.
The White House has yet to respond to requests for comment regarding the issue.
The ABA is asking the administration to amend the executive order to ensure that it does not infringe on the free speech rights of bar associations. As a major organization with over 150,000 members, the ABA is also the federally recognized accreditor of U.S. law schools. Promoting diversity and inclusion is a central goal for the ABA, which revised its program to increase diversity in judicial clerkships in 2024, after criticism from a conservative legal group over the use of race-based criteria.
Furthermore, the ABA has faced opposition from a coalition of 21 Republican-led states. These states argue that the ABA’s accreditation rules, which require law schools to demonstrate commitment to diversity through recruitment and programming, are unlawful.
Though the ABA did not initially comment on the executive order targeting diversity efforts, its president, Bill Bay, expressed in a January 28 email to members that the organization remains committed to inclusivity and fairness.
In addition to the diversity resolution, the ABA’s House of Delegates also passed a measure calling for the restoration of entry-level legal positions at the U.S. Department of Justice and other federal agencies, which were cut during the Trump administration’s hiring freeze. The resolution also seeks to reinstate summer internships that had been rescinded after Trump’s inauguration.
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