Lindsey Halligan ordered by judge to explain use of US attorney title
- - Lindsey Halligan ordered by judge to explain use of US attorney title
Melina Khan, USA TODAYJanuary 8, 2026 at 3:45 AM
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A federal judge ordered Lindsey Halligan to explain why she continues to identify herself as a U.S. attorney, despite a previous judge's determination that she was unlawfully appointed to the role.
Halligan, a former personal lawyer to President Donald Trump his administration appointed to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, is the prosecutor who brought charges against Former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James last year.
However, the cases against Comey and James were dismissed in November 2025 after a U.S. district judge ruled Halligan was not lawfully chosen to head the office for the Eastern District of Virginia. The Department of Justice has appealed the ruling.
In a separate case, on Jan. 6, U.S. District Judge David Novak (Eastern District of Virginia) ordered Halligan to file a written document explaining why she identified herself as a U.S. attorney, given the earlier ruling.
Novak's order states that Halligan has seven days to respond and should also explain why her use of the title is not a false or misleading statement.
USA TODAY contacted the U.S. Attorney's Office for comment on Jan. 7, but has not yet received a response.
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1 / 30U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi heads Justice DepartmentAttorney General Pam Bondi testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on Oct. 7, 2025 in Washington, DC.Who is Lindsey Halligan? About her challenged appointment as US attorney
Lindsey Halligan followed by Jim Trusty, part of former U.S. President Donald Trumps legal team, leave the Paul G. Rogers Federal Building and Courthouse in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sept. 1, 2022.
In September 2025, Attorney General Pam Bondi purportedly appointed Halligan to head the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia after the previous head, Erik Siebert, departed.
Siebert reportedly expressed skepticism about bringing charges against Comey or James, telling colleagues in an email that he had resigned; however, Trump later said in a social media post that he fired him.
"I fired (Siebert), and there is a GREAT CASE, and many lawyers, and legal pundits, say so. Lindsey Halligan is a really good lawyer, and likes you, a lot," Trump said in the Truth Social post addressed to "Pam."
Hours after that post, Bondi issued an order authorizing Halligan to be the interim head of the office. Before that, Halligan had never been a prosecutor.
Within weeks of the appointment, Halligan's office secured indictments against both Comey and James.
Then, on Nov. 24, senior U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie wrote in an opinion that only a district court had the power to appoint a new head to the Eastern District of Virginia. Because Halligan was the prosecutor in the two cases, Currie said, her unlawful appointment rendered the charges dismissed.
Contributing: Aysha Bagchi, Bart Jansen and Josh Meyer, USA TODAY
Melina Khan is a national trending reporter for USA TODAY. She can be reached at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lindsey Halligan has to explain use of US attorney title, judge orders
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