UPDATE: Clement, the $5m a year Bush lawyer in charge of the case, just quit the firm.
Looks like John Boehner lost his lawyers. Via Twitter from Amanda Terkel:
BREAKING: Law firm @kslaw says it's backing out of DOMA case. Determine "process used for vetting this engagement was inadequate"Remember, the Judge in the Edie Windsor case told Boehner that his lawyers are supposed to appear at a conference on May 9th. John wrote last week about the controversy surrounding King & Spalding taking this case.
UPDATE: Ben Smith has the statement from the law firm:
King and Spalding Chairman Robert D. Hays, Jr., whose partner Paul Clement was to lead the defense, said in a statement through a spokesman, Les Zuke:Fighting equality is bad for business.
Today the firm filed a motion to withdraw from its engagement to represent the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group of the House of Representatives on the constitutional issues regarding Section III of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act. Last week we worked diligently through the process required for withdrawal.The statement is silent on the reasons for the decision, but the firm faced protests at its Atlanta office and a national campaign against it. And now the House majority is looking for a new lawyer.
In reviewing this assignment further, I determined that the process used for vetting this engagement was inadequate. Ultimately I am responsible for any mistakes that occurred and apologize for the challenges this may have created.
John has more about the significance of this story over at the main AMERICAblog site.
