A federal judge appointed by President Obama, Kathleen Williams, has drawn criticism from legal figures across the political spectrum after referring lawyers connected to President Trump and the Justice Department for potential disciplinary action by bar associations. The move has proved particularly notable because even some commentators who are not ideologically aligned with the Trump administration have objected, with one liberal constitutional law professor saying he will not teach the judge's reasoning to his students as an acceptable legal precedent.

Williams formally referred Trump attorney Alejandro Brito to the bar over his conduct, in a case that also touches on the role of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. The professor's public break with the judge highlights unease, even among those sympathetic to scrutiny of the administration, that using bar discipline against government lawyers could set a troubling precedent for legal practice more broadly. The article notes the dispute unfolds against a backdrop of wider tension between the judiciary and the Trump Justice Department.