After a fierce outcry from gay rights groups, Atlanta-based King & Spalding has decided not to enter into a contract with House Republicans to defend the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution (AJC).
Former U.S. Solicitor-General Paul Clement, who was to lead the defense of DOMA as a partner at King & Spalding, resigned on Monday and will continue to fight against equal rights for all. He will defend DOMA as the newest member of the Washington, D.C.-based law firm, Bancroft PLLC.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), which had strong words for King & Spalding last week and was prepared to launch a PR attack on the firm, applauded its decision not to defend DOMA. “King & Spalding has rightly chosen to put principle above politics in dropping its involvement in the defense of this discriminatory and patently unconstitutional law,” Joe Solmonese, president of HRC, told the AJC.
The AJC noted that the firm’s reputation as a diverse and tolerant workplace fueled the anger of gay rights groups and contributed to the firm’s decision to back down from the defense of DOMA.
“King & Spalding’s retreat was forced in part by its chosen emphasis on an open work force. Its own website says the firm is committed to employing the brightest and most diverse lawyers it can find, including members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community,” reported the AJC.
