As lawyers, we know that we have a duty to zealously represent our clients within the bounds of the law. As our thoughts turn to the American ideals of liberty and freedom that we celebrate on the Fourth of July, we want to discuss a new threat to the ability of one particular group of lawyers to fulfill that duty.
If adopted, a controversial provision buried within the 1030-page H.R. 5136, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 2011, or NDAA, would expose lawyers who represent detainees held at the Naval Station in Guantanamo Bay to an unprecedented level of government oversight and investigation by the Department of Defense (DOD). The provision’s sponsor, Florida Republican Rep. Jeff Miller, argues that the national security implications of the Guantanamo attorneys’ work justify this heightened scrutiny. Numerous legal organizations have condemned this encroachment on attorneys’ freedom to zealously represent clients, a backbone of the freedoms we hold so dear.
