Alina Habba, President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney, resigned Dec. 8 as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey after the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled she had been serving in the role without legal authority.
“As a result of the Third Circuit’s ruling, and to protect the stability and integrity of the office which I love, I have decided to step down in my role as the U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey,” Habba said in a statement. “But do not mistake compliance for surrender. This decision will not weaken the Justice Department, and it will not weaken me.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi said on X she was “saddened” to accept Habba’s resignation and called the court’s decision “flawed.”
“The court’s ruling has made it untenable for her to effectively run her office, with politicized judges pausing trials designed to bring violent criminals to justice,” Bondi wrote. “These judges should not be able to countermand the President’s choice of attorneys entrusted with carrying out the executive branch’s core responsibility of prosecuting crime.”
She said the Department of Justice (DOJ) will seek further review and expressed confidence that the ruling will be reversed, noting Habba could return if that occurs.
Bondi announced Habba will continue serving as senior adviser to the attorney general for U.S. attorneys.
According to FOX News, the DOJ will divide U.S. attorney responsibilities in New Jersey among three officials: Philip Lamparello, Jordan Fox, and Ari Fontecchio.
Trump appointed Habba as interim U.S. attorney in March, a designation that expires after 120 days under federal law. He nominated her for the permanent job in June, but after the Senate took no action, he withdrew the nomination July 24, Axios reported.
Bondi then appointed Habba as a special attorney with broad prosecutorial authority — a workaround that quickly drew scrutiny from judges.
In August, U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann ruled Habba served “without lawful authority.” The Third Circuit upheld that decision Dec. 1, concluding that Habba’s authority lapsed in early July under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. Judges D. Brooks Smith and D. Michael Fisher, both appointed by former President George W. Bush, and Judge L. Felipe Restrepo, appointed by former President Barack Obama, issued the ruling.
“It is apparent that the current administration has been frustrated by some of the legal and political barriers to getting its appointees in place,” the panel wrote, adding that the public “deserve[s] clarity and stability” in the leadership of U.S. attorney offices.
Habba is one of several U.S. attorneys recently disqualified over the Trump administration’s unconventional appointment methods. As CatholicVote previously reported, by July 1, the Senate had confirmed only 86 of Trump’s 339 nominees — a far slower pace than in previous administrations. Facing a backlog of stalled nominations, the administration began relying on special attorney designations and other temporary authorities. Several of those workarounds have now been struck down in court.
In November, a federal judge dismissed criminal cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James after ruling that Lindsey Halligan — a former insurance lawyer and White House aide — had been unlawfully appointed to lead the Eastern District of Virginia U.S. Attorney’s Office.
FOX reported that the dispute over the administration’s authority to appoint and retain acting U.S. attorneys may soon reach the Supreme Court.
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