PSJD News Digest – September 26, 2025

September 26, 2025 at 3:19 pm · Filed under Public Interest Law News Bulletin

Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

Photo: Harris and Ewing Collection, Library of Congress

Hi Interested Public,

Hope this message finds you. Big week for public service legal news. It’ll take time for some of the lines cast this week to fully play out. Beyond the “editor’s choices”, you’ll find reporting that IRS & DOL are working to re-hire some workers who took the “fork in the road” retirement offer last Spring, and that the Supreme Court of Arizona is setting aside briefly-floated plans to provide create a pathway to criminal legal practice in the state based on a single year of classroom legal education. Solidarity,

Sam

Editor’s Choice(s)

The Department of Justice Creates New Civil Division Enforcement & Affirmative Litigation Branch (DOJ Public Affairs; 25 Sept 2025)

“The Affirmative Litigation Section will represent the United States by filing lawsuits against states, municipalities, and private entities that interfere with or obstruct federal policies, ensuring nationwide compliance with the U.S. Constitution and federal law.”

Executive Order: Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence (Presidential Memo; 25 Sept 2025)

“(b) The [The National Joint Terrorism Task Force and its local offices] shall investigate potential Federal crimes relating to acts of recruiting or radicalizing persons for the purpose of…conspiracy against rights; … (c) The JTTFs shall also investigate: (i) institutional and individual funders, and officers and employees of organizations, that are responsible for, sponsor, or otherwise aid and abet the principal actors engaging in the criminal conduct described in subsections (a) and (b) of this section.”

Justice Dept. Official Pushes Prosecutors to Investigate George Soros’s Foundation (New York Times; 25 Sept 2025)

“A senior Justice Department official has instructed more than a half dozen U.S. attorney’s offices to draft plans to investigate a group funded by George Soros, the billionaire Democratic donor whom President Trump has demanded be thrown in jail. The official’s directive, a copy of which was viewed by The New York Times, goes as far as to list possible charges prosecutors could file, ranging from arson to material support of terrorism. The memo suggests department leaders are following orders from the president that specific people or groups be subject to criminal investigation — a major break from decades of past practice meant to insulate the Justice Department from political interference.”

Despite Trump’s Pressure on Justice Dept., Certain Safeguards Are Beyond His Reach (New York Times; 23 Sept 2025)
Even without formal charges, Trump’s DOJ can punish critics (Washington Post; 23 Sept 2025)

Federal Restructuring

Fired watchdogs can’t be reinstated despite Trump’s ‘obvious’ law breaking, court decides (Government Executive; 25 Sept 2025)

“District Judge Ana C. Reyes, a Biden appointee, wrote that it is “obvious” that Trump broke federal law when he fired 17 of the governmental watchdogs on the fifth day of his second term because he ignored requirements to notify Congress 30 days in advance and provide the “substantive rationale, including detailed and case-specific reasons” for the removals…Reyes determined they could not show that they suffered irreparable harm. She noted that, if they were reinstated, Trump could easily remove them again after 30 days by providing notice and rationale to Congress.”

Hiring of military lawyers as immigration judges alarms law experts (The Guardian; 22 Sept 2025)
Trump budget office is hiding federal spending information, ethics nonprofit alleges (Government Executive; 23 Sept 2025)
Bondi fires a third federal prosecutor in Miami office, linked to anti-Trump posts (Miami Herald; 25 Sept 2025)
The Interior Department is taking steps to implement layoffs (Government Executive; 24 Sept 2025)
Labor groups warn of ‘gaping hole’ in First Amendment if court OKs Trump’s anti-union orders (Government Executive; 24 Sept 2025)

“Last month, a three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a stay of an earlier preliminary injunction that found that the White House’s effort to outlaw unions at most federal agencies under the auspices of national security was mere pretext for retaliating against labor groups that had challenged the administration’s workforce policies in court, actions considered to be protected speech under the First Amendment. That effectively allowed implementation of the order to proceed during the course of litigation. But later that month, a judge on the court called for all 11 jurists on the Ninth Circuit bench to examine whether to revisit the three-judge panel’s decision. The news came after federal agencies began formally terminating collective bargaining agreements, despite Justice Department attorneys’ and the Office of Personnel Management’s assurances that such steps would not be taken until the “conclusion of litigation.””

Support networks grow for workers impacted by Trump’s federal job cuts (Government Executive; 18 Sept 2025)
Agencies should prep for mass layoffs if shutdown occurs, White House says (Government Executive; 25 Sept 2025)
- Trump HR Chief Says Resignations Cut Too Deep for Some Agencies (Bloomberg Law; 24 Sept 2025)
  
  “The Internal Revenue Service and the US Department of Labor have taken steps to rehire workers who took the deferred resignation offer. The DOL is considering rescinding about 100 deferred resignations in “mission-critical roles,” a spokeswoman said last week, while the IRS is hiring back an unspecified number of the 26,000 workers who accepted the incentive…The scope of the rehirings is still unknown. Agencies are required to notify the OPM whenever they reverse a deferred resignation, Kupor said. He declined to say how many notices he had received, but said it’s “very small” compared to the roughly 150,000 people who took the incentive.”
- The end of the ‘Fork in the Road’ (Government Executive; 25 Sept 2025)
  
  “A new online retirement system, coupled with record summer claim volumes, has created delays and confusion for federal employees transitioning to annuitant status, even as OPM works to streamline processing and reduce errors.”

Civil Society

No Legal Basis Seen for Trump’s Threats to Strip Exemptions (Tax Notes; 19 Sept 2025)

““Nothing in the Internal Revenue Code authorizes the administration to distinguish between organizations whose messages with which they agree and those whose messages they dislike,” David A. Super of Georgetown University Law Center told Tax Notes. “As long as an organization meets the Code’s broad definition of a charitable or educational purpose, the administration has no basis for challenging them.””

I sought to protect an immigrant legal client. Instead, I’m facing Trump’s new sanctions (The Guardian; 22 Sept 2025)

“Though I’m a solo practitioner with limited resources, I took the case pro bono because my values drive me to help indigent clients. I was aware of the government’s catch-me-if-you-can scheme to move detainees around without notice to escape court oversight, but I felt prepared for the challenge because I’m also an independent legal scholar who published a practice guide to help lawyers navigate habeas corpus actions for immigrant clients…I knew President Trump had issued a proclamation attempting to justify removals after the fact, but I used my best judgment and skills to ask the court to enforce the actual law as written. The government nevertheless proceeded to take my client out of the United States. So I was taken aback when the government asked the judge to punish me for my efforts via a motion for sanctions – which is a novel strategy by the administration to go after immigration attorneys personally by attempting to ruin their record or fine them. I was now a target.”

Democrats seek details on pro bono legal work for Trump administration (Straight Arrow News; 25 Sept 2025)

“In a letter to law firms, Democrats cited a law which prohibits the government from accepting any voluntary services. The law is intended to ensure that the government does not owe any debts or money which has not been approved by Congress. “I hope these law firms realize there is no safety in appeasement,” Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., stated. “Once we get through this nightmare, we have to make sure nobody in the White House or in state power can shake down law firms, media, colleges and universities again for his or her personal enrichment.””

Most Legal Aid Groups Are Using AI Tools In Their Work (Law360; 25 Sept 2025)
The AI Lie That Legal Tech Companies Are Selling…. (JD Supra; 22 Sept 2025)

“Consider what happens when AI makes brief writing 10 times faster. A junior associate who previously drafted one motion per week can now produce 10. But here's what the efficiency prophets miss: opposing counsel also has AI. They're filing 10 motions too. The court's docket explodes. Every case becomes a war of attrition fought with infinite ammunition…The transformation won't be in quantity of work but in its nature.”