Press Statement
January 25, 2026
On the Day of the Endangered Lawyer, NUPL expresses grave concern at the situation facing lawyers and judges in the United States, which has been named this year’s focus country of the international Day of the Endangered Lawyer, alongside countries such as Belarus, Afghanistan and Iran.
The Day of the Endangered Lawyer has been observed for 16 years to draw attention to violations of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers, which require states to guarantee that lawyers can work independently and without fear of harassment or reprisal. The focus on the US serves as a stark warning that these principles are being eroded in a country that has long been regarded as a model of “democracy.”
Under the renewed presidency of Donald Trump, the United States’ standing as a defender of judicial independence and a robust legal profession has deteriorated sharply. Just one year into his second term, lawyers and judges are increasingly subjected to political attacks, retaliation and intimidation simply for carrying out their professional duties.
The international coalition behind the Day has documented a sustained and coordinated campaign by the Trump administration to undermine both the legal profession and the judiciary. This includes the dismissal of career lawyers from the Department of Justice in apparent retaliation for their involvement in past prosecutions, as well as executive actions targeting private law firms that have represented clients opposed to the administration. Such measures blur the line between legal representation and political loyalty and are fundamentally incompatible with the right to a fair legal system.
Judicial independence has also come under direct attack. Judges who issue rulings unfavorable to the administration have been publicly vilified, threatened with impeachment and personally smeared by the president and senior political figures. In recent months, judges in the US have faced a surge in threats and intimidation, creating a climate of fear around the exercise of judicial functions.
NUPL condemns these developments in the strongest possible terms. Political interference in legal practice, the targeting of lawyers for their choice of clients, and the public intimidation of judges strike at the heart of the rule of law and further erode democracy. Similar patterns are seen elsewhere, including in the Philippines, where people’s lawyers have faced grievous attacks such as extrajudicial killings, surveillance and red-tagging.
We stand in solidarity with lawyers and judges in the United States who continue to uphold their professional responsibilities under increasing pressure. We call on US authorities to immediately cease all attacks on the independence of the legal profession and the judiciary, to ensure protection for lawyers and judges under threat, and to provide accountability for harms already inflicted.
NUPL reaffirms its solidarity with endangered lawyers everywhere and its commitment to speaking out against illegitimate interference with the legal profession and judicial independence, wherever it occurs.
Reference:
Atty. Josalee S. Deinla
NUPL Secretary General
+63 917 431 6396
