Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day.
This has been weighing on me since the November election. At this historical moment, I know that I belong back on the front lines fighting for the things that I have believed in since I first walked in the door of The Legal Aid Society as a staff attorney in 1981.
— Steven Banks, special counsel at Paul Weiss, in a statement noted by the New York Times, concerning his decision to leave the firm in the wake of its $40 million pro bono payola deal with Donald Trump to do away with an executive order. Banks, 68, who leads the Paul Weiss pro bono practice, told Reuters that he felt his “time to make a difference as a lawyer is narrowing.” Moving forward, he will representing the Coalition for the Homeless with the Legal Aid Society, where he worked for three decades before joining Paul Weiss. A spokesperson for the firm thanked Banks for his years of service, noting, “We remain committed to providing impactful pro bono legal assistance to individuals and organizations in need.”
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky, X/Twitter, and Threads, or connect with her on LinkedIn.