16th Day of the Endangered Lawyer: Focus on the United States
Upon the occasion of the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Union Internationale des Avocats (UIA – International Association of Lawyers), held in Lisbon on 30 January 2026, we express our unwavering solidarity with lawyers in the United States, whose unparalleled and alarming situation has been designated as the focus of the 16th International Day of the Endangered Lawyer.
Since the beginning of 2025, the UIA and UIA-IROL have been closely monitoring with deep dismay this unprecedented surge in attacks against legal practitioners and law firms, as well as against the legal profession as a whole, including judges and prosecutors. In response to these troubling developments, UIA-IROL has consistently raised its voice and taken concrete actions to address recurring and escalating measures that effectively threaten and undermine the independence of lawyers, both individually and collectively, as well as the justice system in general.
Among other graves sources of concern, we once again condemn the adoption of purely retaliatory executive and administrative measures targeting specific law firms and lawyers solely on the basis of their professional activities, the identity of their clients and/or the legal positions they have taken on behalf of their clients, as well as their pro bono work and efforts at inclusiveness in employment[1]. These measures, including the revocation of security clearances, restricted access to federal facilities, and the denial of government contracts, severely undermine the ability of lawyers and firms to thus operate freely and effectively, and thus fulfil their professional obligations. While many targeted lawyers and law firms have obtained favourable judicial rulings affirming the unconstitutionality of the actions against them, the government is nevertheless appealing the trial courts’ decisions and the harm inflicted on the legal profession by these measures may have lasting consequences.
We are further concerned by the use of other subtler forms of pressure or coercion[2] -- including intimidatory tactics, surveillance, and questioning – that, in some cases, has endangered the integrity of the client-lawyer relationship and the principle of confidentiality. These measures appear to have targeted in particular lawyers whose legal work may be perceived as challenging or contrary to the positions or interests of the federal government, fostering a particularly hostile climate not only for those lawyers but for all legal professionals engaged in these areas of practise.
Additional punitive, intimidating and stigmatising measures -- including the revocation or denial of government funding -- have also been directed at professional organisations representing the legal profession, such as the American Bar Association, as a result of, inter alia, the positions they have taken in opposition to government actions that adversely affected the legal profession, the judiciary and the rule of law. We express our strong solidarity with the American professional organisations of lawyers ,and our profound dismay at these attempts to jeopardize the crucial role bar associations play in a democratic society, both as guardians of the core values of the legal profession, and as key contributors in ensuring effective access to justice and the protection of human rights.
In this context, we share the deep concerns expressed by the international legal community, regarding a real and growing chilling effect that all those measures, taken together, may have on the legal profession, discouraging lawyers from assuming sensitive cases or even cases that could be perceived as such. This situation unquestionably endangers the independence and freedom of the legal profession, and ultimately erodes effective access to justice for all.
In this regard, we further deplore the equally concerning and repeated actions against directed against other key actors responsible for ensuring the proper functioning of the justice system, which has significantly contributed to the politization of the justice system. We understand that since the beginning of 2025, dozens of prosecutors working on criminal investigations on politically sensitive cases or whose views were considered not to be aligned with the government’s political priorities, have been dismissed from the Department of Justice (DOJ), reassigned and/or forced to resign, even after serving for decades. In parallel, several judges have been labelled and threated with disciplinary proceedings for, inter alia, calling out the executive to abide to its constitutional obligations or for ruling adversely to the positions taken by the current administration.
The rapidity with which the situation of the legal profession, the judiciary and the rule of law in the United States -- which we believed to be established and secure -- has deteriorated is striking. We unequivocally condemn these egregious developments and echo the serious concerns raised by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Margaret Satterthwaite: “_(t)o continue down the present road risks undermining hard-won principles and long-protected institutions, with disastrous outcomes for all people in the United States_[3]”.
We therefore call on all public authorities and institutions in the Unites States to take urgent necessary measures to immediately put an end to all forms of retaliation against lawyers and legal institutions, and to protect and safeguard the independence of the legal profession and bar associations. It is essential to restore the freedom and independence of the legal profession, including by ensuring that lawyers are able to perform their functions without fear of actual or threatened harm or retaliation, harassment, unjust prosecution or undue interference, and that they are not assimilate to their clients’ of their clients’ causes. Urgent and relevant measures should also be taken to guarantee the independence of the prosecutorial and judicial institutions.
We reaffirm that only a strong and truly independent legal profession can adequately safeguard and strengthen the rule of law, ensure adequate protection of rights, access to justice for all, and the proper functioning of a democratic society. We will therefore remain steadfast in our support to lawyers and to professional organizations in the United States who relentlessly continue to courageously uphold their crucial role in the face of such unprecedented attacks.
And as we once again proudly join the numerous voices of the international legal community in solidarity with our colleagues, we salute the strength, unity and determination demonstrated by the broad mobilization of lawyers, bar associations, and lawyers’ organisations around the world, reflecting a unwavering and shared commitment to the independence and freedom of the legal profession and to the fundamental values of the rule of law.
Attacks on legal professionals in any jurisdiction are a matter of global concern, as they weaken confidence in justice systems everywhere. We must not take any situation as granted nor falter in our continued vigilance. The freedom and independence of our profession, both globally and nationally, depend on it.
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[1] See here and here. See also the Amicus Curiae Brief submitted by UIA-IROL in support of Plaintiff Susman Godfrey LLP.[2] See for instance here.
[3] See “UN Expert: Lawyers in the United States are attacked, undermined but defiant”, Media statement, Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Margaret Satterthwaite, 24 January 2026, available at https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/issues/ijudiciary/statements/20260122-stm-day-endangered-lawyer-en.pdf