Trump’s legal team has submitted a new document in the ongoing attempt to disqualify Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis through an appeal of his Georgia election interference case. According to Newsweek, Trump’s lawyers have requested oral arguments, following the Georgia Court of Appeals’ decision to pause the case while awaiting a ruling on the disqualification efforts. In an email to Newsweek, Trump’s lead attorney in Atlanta, Steve Sadow, confirmed the request for oral arguments and stated that they will provide further clarification on the reasons for disqualifying Willis.
“President Trump has filed his request for oral argument in the Georgia Court of Appeals, currently calendared for October. We believe oral argument will assist the Court by highlighting and clarifying the reasons why the case should be dismissed and Fulton County DA Willis should be disqualified for her misconduct,” Sadow said.
Newsweek further noted that before any oral arguments can take place, the court of appeals must first grant permission to hear them. A preliminary October docket date has been set for Trump’s appeal against the judge’s decision to not disqualify Willis. It is highly likely now that the case will not proceed to trial prior to the November presidential election.
“A calendar will be sent to counsel of record confirming the exact date of oral argument,” the notice said.
The trouble with Willis began in early January when former White House staff member Michael Roman submitted a motion to disqualify DA Willis from prosecuting the case against Trump and his co-defendants. The motion claimed that Willis had an “inappropriate” relationship with then-Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade and alleged that she gained financial benefits from both the investigation and the relationship.
On March 15, Judge McAfee determined that Trump and his co-defendants did not provide sufficient evidence to prove that the romantic relationship between Willis and Wade constituted a “conflict of interest” or that Willis benefited from it. However, McAfee acknowledged a “significant appearance of impropriety” and decided that either Willis or Wade would need to step aside for the case to proceed in Fulton County. A few hours later, Wade resigned.
On March 18, Trump and several of his co-defendants requested permission from Judge McAfee to appeal his decision, and on March 20, McAfee granted their request. On March 29, attorneys for Trump and his co-defendants filed an application for an interlocutory appeal, arguing that Wade’s departure did not resolve the appearance of impropriety and had “cast a shadow over these entire proceedings.”
On May 8, the Georgia Court of Appeals agreed to hear the appeal, granting Trump and his 14 co-defendants 10 days to file a notice of appeal. This transfer of the case from Fulton County Superior Court to the Court of Appeals was reported by Fox 5.
