American Bar Association Joins in Criticism of Justice Department

By Scott Horton

The American Bar Association has now joined the New York City Bar Association in criticism of the Justice Department’s proposal to limit the access of habeas lawyers to their clients at Guantánamo. ABA President Karen J. Mathis stated:

“The ability of lawyers to confer with their clients and advocate for justice for those clients is a deeply imbedded principle of American democracy. Arbitrary restrictions concerning the number of times and the ways that lawyers may confer with their clients in Guantanamo, or in any court, would threaten competent representation without at all advancing national security. The principles of freedom, due process and justice are too critical to our national character to be abandoned in any manner.”