Fox News' Andrew Napolitano says McGahn's defiance of a subpoena is actually standard legal practice

Judge Andrew Napolitano. — (Image credit: Getty Images)

There's a whole lot of confusion about whether former White House Counsel Don McGahn is obligated to provide testimony concerning Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into 2016 Russian election interference before the House Judiciary Committee. But it might just boil down to standard legal ethics, Fox News' Andrew Napolitano said.

The White House explicitly ordered McGahn to defy a subpoena for his testimony, while the committee, chaired by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), says his appearance is "not optional." McGahn followed the White House's orders on Tuesday when he didn't show up for the scheduled hearing. In the end, though, the courts will decide what will happen going forward.

Napolitano, Fox News' judicial analyst, told Fox & Friends on Tuesday that McGahn certainly could defy President Trump's orders, but if he did he would be burdened by "very, very serious legal ethics issues." When any lawyer — White House-affiliated or not — is asked by a former client to withhold information about their relationship, they should honor the request until a judge makes an official decision on the matter, Napolitano explained. "Now the client says 'don't say anything.' You follow the client's instructions until a court tells you otherwise," Napolitano said. Read more at Fox News.

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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.