DOJ Asks Appeals Court to Reconsider Alina Habba’s Disqualification

The petition asks for the full court to rehear the case after a three-judge panel affirmed a decision to remove her as acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey.

Alina Habba looks on during a swearing in ceremony as U.S. Attorney General for New Jersey in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on March 28, 2025. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

The Justice Department has asked an appeals court to reconsider its earlier ruling that Alina Habba was not validly serving as acting U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey.

In a petition on Jan. 14, the Justice Department asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit for a rehearing en banc, or one with the whole 14-member court. A panel of three judges decided last month to affirm a lower court’s decision disqualifying her based on its reading of the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, which governs how acting officials may be appointed.