By Richard Vanderford

Paul Weiss, a large law firm that President Trump recently targeted with an executive order, has been fired by a prominent client facing foreign bribery charges over concerns he could be negatively impacted if he continues to retain the firm.

Steven Schwartz, the former chief legal officer of Teaneck, N.J.-based Cognizant Technology Solutions, dropped Paul Weiss in response to Trump's order, the firm said Wednesday in a filing in federal court in New Jersey asking for permission to withdraw from the case.

Schwartz is scheduled to go on trial next month over his alleged involvement in a scheme to pay $2 million in bribes in India to help obtain permission to build a corporate campus there, but the case is under review after Trump curbed enforcement of the U.S. law against foreign bribery.

"Mr. Schwartz is concerned that the firm's continued representation of him may negatively affect his ability to obtain a favorable review of his case," Paul Weiss, which Schwartz had retained as lead counsel, wrote.

Schwartz, who is also represented by other firms, is looking for replacement trial counsel, Paul Weiss said.

The firm, a 1,200-lawyer outfit that works on Wall Street's biggest deals, is one of several that President Trump has censured as part of an escalating battle with some elite law firms.

The executive order cited the firm's pro bono work for the attorney general's office for the District of Columbia on a lawsuit brought against individuals who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. It also cited the firm's association with lawyer Mark Pomerantz, who worked at the firm for two decades and later worked on an investigation at the Manhattan district attorney's office into Trump and his business.

Paul Weiss said Schwartz is also concerned that, because of the executive order, a potential conflict of interest might exist between him and the firm. The order could potentially block prosecutors from engaging with attorneys for the firm, Paul Weiss said.

"Regardless of whether or not the government is permitted to engage with Paul, Weiss in the ongoing review, Mr. Schwartz is concerned that Paul, Weiss's ongoing involvement in the matter could in and of itself prejudice the review of his case," the firm said.

The Schwartz case has been lucrative for the firm. Cognizant said in 2021 it had paid Paul Weiss nearly $20 million for just over two years' work for Mr. Schwartz, a disclosure it made in the context of a billing dispute involving another firm. Since then, the firm has continued to work on the case for nearly four additional years.

A spokeswoman for the firm didn't respond to a request for comment. A Justice Department spokeswoman declined to comment.

Write to Richard Vanderford at Richard.Vanderford@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 19, 2025 18:27 ET (22:27 GMT)

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