U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign for the White House is receiving significant support from Paul Weiss, a prominent law firm with strong ties to the Democratic Party. Paul Weiss, favored by Big Tech and Wall Street, has seen its employees donate more to Democratic candidates this election cycle than any other law firm. A partner at the firm has assisted Harris with debate preparation, and Chairman Brad Karp is actively rallying other lawyers in support of the vice president.
Last week, Karp initiated a fundraising effort for Harris within the legal community, reaching out to nearly 300 corporate lawyers, many of whom had backed her 2020 presidential bid. More than half of the lawyers on the email, viewed by Reuters, are associated with Paul Weiss.
While relationships between law firms and political candidates, especially a candidate like Harris who is herself a lawyer, are common, advocacy groups are expressing concern. They worry that corporate-affiliated funders could exert undue influence, potentially steering Harris away from President Joe Biden’s policies that have been unpopular with the business community.
“There is definitely a concern that the revolving door between the Democratic Party and Big Law serves the interests of not only the politicians but clients of the revolving-door officials,” said Jeff Hauser, founder of the Revolving Door Project.
Karen Dunn, co-leader of Paul Weiss’ litigation group and part of Harris’ debate prep team, is also leading the legal team for Alphabet’s Google in an antitrust trial set to begin on September 9, one day before Harris’ first debate with former President Donald Trump. Dunn, who has previously served as an associate White House counsel for President Barack Obama, has assisted him, Harris, and Hillary Clinton with past debate preparations. She has also represented major companies like Apple and Uber.
Paul Weiss lawyers and staff have contributed at least $1.4 million to Democrats in the 2024 election cycle, making it the top law firm in political donations tracked by OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan research group.
The majority of donations from lawyers and legal industry employees have gone to Biden, whose campaign Harris took over in mid-July. Biden’s campaign has received at least $14.5 million, while Trump has garnered at least $2.5 million, according to OpenSecrets.
Karp, who has chaired Paul Weiss since 2008, was one of Biden’s top fundraisers in 2020 after initially supporting Harris during the Democratic primaries. His relationship with Harris began about a decade ago when Paul Weiss represented Citigroup in 2014 during an investigation led by state and federal authorities, including Harris, who was then California’s attorney general.
“I came away from that experience enormously impressed by her intellect, tenacity, and creativity, and have supported her political efforts since,” Karp told Reuters. He is now collaborating with other law firm and business leaders to raise funds for Harris and is recruiting lawyers to address potential election law issues, viewing the upcoming election as the most consequential in recent history.
Karp also serves on the board of a nonprofit that maintains the vice-presidential residence. Several other partners at the firm, including former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, former U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag, and former Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, all Paul Weiss partners, have publicly endorsed Harris’ candidacy.
Jo-Ellen Pozner, an ethics professor at Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business, noted that lawyers have a vested interest in the stability of the legal system, but acknowledged that donors wield influence. “Donors definitely are looking for relationships that they can call in,” she said.
