Brad Karp and Bob Atkins Author Op-Ed Urging the Private Bar to Fight Voter Suppression Laws
April 1, 2021
Firm chairman Brad Karp and litigation partner Bob Atkins, co-chair of the Brennan Center for Justice, published an op-ed in The American Lawyer exhorting law firms to join corporate America in opposing new state legislation designed to suppress voting rights, particularly among African Americans. In the piece, “It's Time for the Legal Industry to Fight Voter Suppression Efforts,” Brad and Bob note recent legislation passed in Georgia that adds obstacles to absentee voting, restricts the use of ballot drop boxes, and criminalizes the distribution of food and water to those waiting in line to vote—voter suppression tactics also found in 253 other bills in 43 other states across the country, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.
The current law in Georgia and the similar laws proposed in other states require “a strong and concerted effort from members of the bar to protect the rights of voters,” the authors write. “We should use our voices and our resources to advocate for the passage of laws at the state and federal levels that would expand access to the ballot and make voting easier and more available to larger numbers of citizens…[T]he legal community has a steadfast obligation to protect voting rights, combat voter suppression efforts and safeguard our democracy.”