Lindsey Halligan, appointed by President Donald Trump to lead the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, left her position Tuesday after federal judges declared her appointment unlawful and issued orders preventing her from continuing in the role.
The departure marks the second Trump appointee to be forced out after court rulings found their appointments illegal, signaling an emerging pattern of judicial resistance to the administration’s method of installing loyalists in key law enforcement positions.
Lindsey Halligan’s tenure as interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia ended Tuesday as two federal judges issued orders barring her from the position, marking another setback for President Donald Trump’s effort to install loyalists in key law enforcement roles.
On the day her 120-day appointment expired, Judge M. Hannah Lauck, the district’s chief judge, directed court staff to post a vacancy announcement. In a separate order, Judge David Novak barred Halligan from identifying herself as U.S. attorney in any court filing and threatened disciplinary proceedings if she violated the ban.
“This charade of Ms. Halligan masquerading as the United States Attorney for this District in direct defiance of binding court orders must come to an end,” Novak wrote in his order.
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Halligan’s departure Tuesday evening on social media. “The circumstances that led to this outcome are deeply misguided,” Bondi said, characterizing the judicial obstacles to Trump appointees as impediments to public safety. “We are living in a time when a democratically elected President’s ability to staff key law enforcement positions faces serious obstacles.”
How Halligan Came to the Post
Trump appointed Halligan in September to lead one of the Justice Department’s most prestigious offices. She was a White House aide and his personal lawyer but had no prior experience as a federal prosecutor. Trump directed her to pursue prosecutions against two of his political adversaries: former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Halligan secured indictments against both within weeks.
When Judges Blocked Her Appointment
The victory proved short-lived. In November, U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie ruled that Halligan’s appointment violated federal law because she had not undergone Senate confirmation. Currie dismissed both indictments as a consequence. The Justice Department has appealed.
Despite the adverse ruling, the Trump administration kept Halligan in the position for the next two months—a stance that drew sharp rebuke from judges in subsequent court filings. Judge Novak criticized both Halligan and Attorney General Bondi for what he described as overly combative legal arguments. “Ms. Halligan’s response, in which she was joined by both the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney General, contains a level of vitriol more appropriate for a cable news talk show,” Novak wrote.
A Widening Pattern
Halligan’s exit continues a pattern of judicial invalidation of Trump appointees’ authority to serve. Last month, Alina Habba, another of Trump’s personal attorneys, resigned after an appeals court ruled her appointment unlawful.
The office Halligan led has experienced significant turnover since September, when the administration forced out the veteran U.S. attorney, Erik Siebert, and installed Halligan in his place. It remains unclear who will now head the office, a prestigious division of the Justice Department responsible for major prosecutions across Virginia and surrounding jurisdictions.