The law firms working for Big Oil — and now Trump
Most firms that have caved to the president’s threats have abysmal track records on climate, according to new data from Law Students for Climate Accountability.
Seven out of the nine law firms that recently capitulated to demands by President Trump received an ‘F’ grade for their climate work in an accountability report card published Thursday.
The 2025 Law Firm Climate Change Scorecard is the sixth annual report from the student-led Law Students for Climate Accountability (LSCA) that documents the ties between the 100 most prestigious law firms in the country and the fossil fuel industry. Firms are graded based on the number and extent of their work litigating, lobbying, and securing transactions on behalf of oil and gas versus renewable energy companies.
This year’s report shows that caving to presidential threats and defending fossil fuel companies often go hand in hand. Major law firms Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison; A&O Shearman; Kirkland & Ellis; Latham & Watkins; Milbank; Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett; and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom — all of whom have cut deals to provide pro bono legal services to President Trump in order to avoid punitive executive orders — scored an ‘F’ for their work for Big Oil companies. Another, Willkie, Farr & Gallagher, scored a “D,” while Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft was the only one to receive a ‘B’ for their climate work.
“There is a high overlap between the firms that are willing to do this work [for fossil fuel companies] and the firms that are going to bend the knee to the Trump administration,” said Haley Czarnek, LSCA’s national director.
Beginning with Paul Weiss — which represents ExxonMobil in climate deception lawsuits against the company — an expanding list of law firms have cut deals with President Trump after they were targeted for representing clients that challenged the administration or having diversity, equity, and inclusion policies for employment and hiring.
The firms have received harsh criticism from others in the legal industry, who say their capitulation to Trump’s tactics puts the rule of law in danger. But they’ve often escaped scrutiny for their day-to-day work, which includes representing oil and gas majors in lawsuits over deception, pollution, and permitting; lobbying for fossil fuels; and helping Big Oil make transactions, from acquiring facilities to company mergers.
Paul Weiss scored worst for its representation of fossil fuel companies in the report’s litigation section. Latham & Watkins facilitated the second-most transactions for fossil fuel interests (more than $184 billion-worth between 2020 and 2024) and scored sixth-worst for litigation on behalf of Big Oil, according to LSCA. Latham & Watkins defends ConocoPhillips against climate deception lawsuits, has represented major pipeline companies in challenges to federal regulatory approvals, and advised companies on pipeline financing and acquisitions.
A&O Shearman did the third-most transactional work for Big Oil. Shearman & Sterling, which has now merged into that firm, represented Chevron in its $53 billion acquisition of Hess — a megadeal which members of Congress and advocates warned could further jeopardize democracy, workers, and the climate.
Kirkland & Ellis facilitated the eighth-most transactions for fossil fuels. The firm, one of the biggest law firms in the world by revenue, along with Latham & Watkins, now represents French oil giant Total against climate deception lawsuits, and has long been hired by the fossil fuel industry to ward off accountability efforts. Kirkland & Ellis defended BP against claims brought by workers and coastal residents who said they developed health issues after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Many former employees of the firm, known for its support of conservative causes, went on to work for the Justice Department during Trump’s first term.
“ I personally think that there's a lot of cognitive dissonance involved in choosing not to think about how the work that you're doing is going to ultimately destroy the habitability of the planet on which you're living,” Czarnek said. “ It makes sense to me that the firms that are doing the most work [like this] are also going to be most likely to participate in what I really believe is the erosion of our democratic rights.”
LSCA was first founded in response to law students’ protests at major universities calling on Paul Weiss to drop Exxon as a client. As its latest scorecard is released, law students are protesting Big Oil law firms for their deals with Trump.
Those firms could now be tasked with working on a wide range of issues for Trump, who has suggested he could use them to negotiate trade deals and revitalize the coal industry. One of Trump’s recent executive orders instructed the Department of Justice to take steps to block the enforcement of state climate laws, policies, and lawsuits against the fossil fuel industry and “recommend any additional Presidential or legislative action necessary.”
The Trump directives come as the oil industry launches multi-pronged efforts to escape accountability in court — from lobbying Congress for legal immunity to petitioning the Supreme Court to prevent private citizens from suing polluters over environmental issues.
LSCA’s mission has been to encourage law firms to drop their fossil fuel clients and to give new law school graduates more information about firms before they decide where to work. While their scorecard found that students have more choices of firms taking actions to mitigate climate change, the group also acknowledged the legal profession’s role in increasingly urgent threats to democracy and the climate.
“Firms will make one of two choices: they will work to maintain and strengthen their climate commitments, or swim with the political currents and sell the rest of us down the river,” reads their report. “Law students, when deciding where to plant their professional roots, must pay close attention to which firms make the weak choice.”
Never ask me to support a candidate who has taken big money from the oil and gas industry. These law firms have enabled the fossil fuel industry by making it legally acceptable to represent clients despite clear conflicts of interest. Time and again, I've witnessed fossil fuel law firms representing government entities—city and county—while they push for deregulation on critical issues like water, air, land, and even toxic waste. This isn't just legal representation; it's corruption and collusion at its worst. The consequences of this industry influence are now on full display. How can we trust institutions that profit from destroying our planet and undermining our democracy? The legal profession’s ties to Big Oil are not just an ethical concern—they're a direct threat to our future. #ExxonKnew #FossilFuelCorruption #ClimateJustice