ISTANBUL

A federal appeals court upheld the disqualification of Alina Habba, former personal lawyer to President Donald Trump, from serving as acting US Attorney for the District of New Jersey, ruling that her appointment violated federal law.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals said the administration’s method of installing Habba through legally questionable steps rendered her appointment invalid from July 1, 2025. The panel affirmed a lower court ruling that she had not been legally appointed and therefore could not perform the duties of New Jersey’s top federal prosecutor.

The court asserted that only the “first assistant in place at the time of the vacancy automatically assumes acting status,” rejecting the government’s attempt to name Habba first assistant months after the office became vacant.

It also dismissed the administration’s argument that withdrawing Habba’s permanent nomination to the Senate removed a legal barrier preventing her from serving. “The nomination bar prevents Habba from serving as Acting U.S. Attorney ... because the withdrawal of a nomination necessarily happens after ‘the President submits a nomination,’” the court wrote.

The Attorney General’s attempt to delegate prosecutorial powers to Habba as a special attorney was ruled unlawful as well. The court said it amounted to bypassing constitutional requirements for Senate-confirmed appointments.

“Habba is not the Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey ... Therefore, we will affirm the District Court’s disqualification order,” it concluded.

The White House did not immediately respond to the decision.