Appeals Panel Hears Challenge to Alina Habba Appointment

A federal appeals panel in Philadelphia has heard arguments over whether Alina Habba, a former personal attorney to President Trump who has served as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey since March 2025, lawfully held the office after a district judge found her 120‑day interim term expired and disqualified her. The Justice Department appealed, with DOJ lawyer Henry Whitaker arguing that delegations and statutes — including the Federal Vacancies Reform Act and 28 U.S.C. §515 — allow officials to continue performing functions beyond formal time limits, and the administration withdrew Habba's nomination while invoking alternative legal authority for her service. Appellate judges pressed the government on the interplay between those statutes and the Appointments Clause, calling the personnel moves “novel” and unusual. Defendants and Judge Matthew W. Brann contend Habba's appointment was unlawful and that prosecutions she oversaw may be tainted, while the government warned that invalidating such appointments could cripple executive-branch operations. The panel heard arguments with Habba in the gallery, did not issue an immediate ruling, and the decision could have sweeping implications for other U.S. attorneys and pending federal cases nationwide.