Lawyers for former President Donald Trump have made a new filing amid ongoing efforts to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis through an appeal of his Georgia election interference case.
Newsweek reported that Trump’s attorneys confirmed a request for oral arguments on Monday, which comes after the Georgia Court of Appeals last week paused the case indefinitely, “pending a ruling on defendants’ efforts to disqualify Willis from the investigation.”
On Monday, Trump’s lead Atlanta attorney, Steve Sadow, confirmed in an emailed statement to Newsweek that Trump has filed a request for oral arguments in the court of appeals. He added that those arguments will help clarify the reasons why Willis should be disqualified.
A tentative October docket date has been scheduled for Trump’s appeal of the judge’s order declining to disqualify Willis. It’s almost certain now that the case will not go to trial before the November presidential election.
The issue with Willis began in early January when former White House staff member Michael Roman filed a motion seeking to disqualify DA Willis from prosecuting the case against Trump and his co-defendants. The motion alleged that Willis had an “improper” relationship with then-Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade and claimed that she financially benefited from both the investigation and the relationship.
On May 8, the Georgia Court of Appeals agreed to hear the appeal, giving Trump and his 14 co-defendants 10 days to file a notice of appeal, thus transferring the case from Fulton County Superior Court to the Court of Appeals, Fox 5 reported.
Meanwhile, a recent ruling allows attorneys representing one of the co-defendants in the Georgia case to contend that Willis exceeded her jurisdiction when she filed election-related racketeering charges against him.