CORRECTED-New nonprofit firm in Washington adds to legal resistance to Trump

By David Thomas

Aug 4 (Reuters) - A group of former lawyers from the U.S. Justice Department and major law firms launched a new nonprofit on Monday to take on cases for free opposing actions by the Trump administration.

The newly formed Washington Litigation Group will represent targets of criminal and congressional investigations and pursue civil litigation targeting President Donald Trump's executive orders, according to attorneys Nathaniel Zelinsky and James Pearce.

"We're here to represent folks who need representation in a critical moment for American democracy and the rule of law," Zelinsky told Reuters.

The new firm is part of the legal team representing Cathy Harris, a Democratic appointee to the Merit Systems Protection Board who was fired from the federal employee labor agency by Trump earlier this year.

Zelinsky in June resigned from law firm Milbank, which is among nine major firms that pledged to donate nearly $1 billion in free legal services to causes Trump supports in order to avoid a crackdown by the administration. Milbank is also representing Harris in her lawsuit.

Zelinsky declined to name donors to the new firm. He said it has received funding from institutions that support democracy and is seeking to hire at least one more attorney.

A Reuters investigation last month found that dozens of major law firms have scaled back pro bono litigation that could place them in conflict with the Trump administration.

Joining Zelinsky and Pearce are Samantha Bateman and Mary Dohrmann, both former Justice Department lawyers. Pearce and Dohrmann were members of U.S. special counsel Jack Smith's team that brought criminal cases accusing Trump of illegally retaining classified documents at his Florida social club and attempting to interfere with the certification of the 2020 election.

Trump pleaded not guilty to all charges and argued the cases reflected a "weaponization" of the legal system. Pearce said he and Dohrmann were fired from the Justice Department in January, after Trump began his second term.

A steering committee of retired lawyers and judges will help lead and advise the new firm, including on hiring matters and case selection, Zelinsky and Pearce said.

The committee includes Peter Keisler, who served as acting U.S. attorney general under President George W. Bush, and Tom Green, a former head of Sidley Austin's white-collar defense practice who is serving as president of the group.

Separately, in May, two former Justice Department lawyers launched the Civil Service Law Center, a law firm founded to "fight against the Trump administration's attempts to dismantle the civil service."