The GOP Watchdog says the American Bar Association's short program is riddled with bias

A conservative watchdog group is adding fodder to the debate over whether the American Bar Association has become a left-leaning political institution.

A new report released by the pro-Trump legal group America First Legal, co-founded by one of the president's top advisers, Stephen Miller, says that the ABA's Standing Committee on Amicus Curiae Briefs over the past decade has produced 80% of left-leaning arguments, 20% neutral and neutral.

Meanwhile, in all 6 cases the ABA has filed amicus briefs involving Trump, the ABA has argued against the president or his allies.

President Donald Trump's second term has included attacks on the ABA, which it says has politicized its vetting power, and has favored Democratic-backed candidates in vetting judicial nominees. The ABA's size and legacy make it the legal industry's main trade organization, but some conservatives fear the group's power will become a “monopoly.”

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“The ABA requires that amicus briefs be approved by its Board of Directors and must comply with existing ABA policy or involve issues of 'special importance to lawyers or the legal profession,'” said a press release from the AFL. “Briefs on birthright citizenship, transgender health care for children, and the Texas heartbeat law fall outside that mandate.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the ABA for comment on the allegations regarding the amicus filing, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

According to the AFL study, which scanned summaries submitted between April 2016 and February 2026, there were a total of 87 submissions. 70 of them were “in favor of an open or progressive outcome,” the AFL said, while none they met were “adherent to strict rules”, the group added. The remainder included what the AFL described as neutral matters, such as copyright law litigation.

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The audit also found that cases in which Trump, or a Trump official, were named, and the ABA filed an amicus brief, each time they argued against a Trump official or Trump himself.

U.S. President Donald Trump sits in court during his impeachment trial at the New York Supreme Court on January 11, 2024 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago)

“The ABA presents its amicus program to advance the interests of the judiciary and the rule of law,” said Gene Hamilton, President of America First Legal.

“The details tell a different story,” Hamilton continued. “More than four-fifths of the briefs push a progressive agenda, immigrant advocacy has become the centerpiece of the agenda, and the organization has not once — in ten years and in all of Trump's two districts — included a brief message that could be seen as supporting a conservative legal position. The ABA is not a neutral arbiter and should not be treated any differently than any other liberal advocate.”

In President Trump's second term, the Trump administration has taken several steps to push back on what it says is bias toward the ABA. In February 2025, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson announced a new policy that prohibits political appointees of the FTC from holding leadership roles in the American Bar Association (ABA), participating in ABA events, or renewing their ABA membership.

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That early action was followed by several others, such as a May letter to the ABA president from Attorney General Pam Bondi indicating that the Justice Department would no longer engage in its traditional relationship with vetting judicial nominees, saying it “refuses to correct the bias in its rating system, despite criticism.”

Meanwhile, in April, Trump signed an Executive Order that singled out the ABA and other powerful accreditation groups, warning that anyone who practices illegal discrimination will be denied recognition by the organization.