After Perkins Lawyer Firing, Law Firms ‘Between a Rock and a Hard Place’ in Policing Social Media [The American Lawyer Quotes Gina Rubel]
Perkins Coie has fired a lawyer for a social media post criticizing conservative activist Charlie Kirk and the Trump administration shortly after Kirk was killed. This firing is part of a growing trend of Big Law firms monitoring employees’ online presence in an increasingly volatile political climate.
Furia Rubel CEO and general counsel Gina Rubel discussed the controversy, noting that the recent executive order against Perkins Coie and the ongoing litigation over it may have influenced the firm’s decision. “Perkins is between a rock and a hard place,” she said. “It’s a pretty damning post, and there are a lot of adjectives that are unnecessary to relay the facts, and so given everything they as a particular firm are dealing with, this just fuels the fire against them.”
Rubel added that a law firm employee might also be fired for endorsing some of Kirk’s controversial opinions, such as his support for “replacement theory.” She explained that the way a law firm reacts to each situation is fact specific: “It depends on the firm and what battles they’re fighting right now,” she said.
Rubel emphasized that firms should develop clear social media policies advising employees on what content is permissible to post. Establishing and training all employees, partners and legal professionals alike on guidelines will help every law firm set expectations and boundaries.
As a follow up to the article, Rubel wants readers to know that like the practice of law, every matter is fact specific. Each firm must evaluate similar situations based on factors relevant to the situation, the firm’s risk tolerance, the firm’s public profile and what’s at stake – the same way that lawyers evaluate the merits of a client matter before litigation.
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