President Donald Trump appointed one of his personal attorneys and former White House aide Lindsey Halligan as the top prosecutor in the Eastern District of Virginia in late September. Trump nominated Halligan to replace Erik Siebert in the position after he did not find the evidence to bring an indictment against James.

James’s attorneys, Abbe David Lowell and Andrew Bosse, filed an “instant Notice to formally alert the Court” that they would be motioning to dismiss the case because of what they see as Halligan’s “unlawful appointment.”

“Please take notice that on October 24, 2025, Letitia James, by counsel, will file her motion
to dismiss the indictment that challenges the unlawful appointment of the United States Attorney
for the Eastern District of Virginia, Lindsey Halligan,” James’s attorneys wrote in the filing.

Lowell had called the Trump administration’s firing of Siebert “illegal” in September. James’s counsel said they filed the notice in advance of the motion “in the interest of efficiency and to
avoid any unnecessary delay, particularly if this Court must designate this motion to an out-of-district judge.” James’s case is assigned to the Biden-appointed U.S. District Judge Jamar K. Walker.

The motion in James’s case comes just days after attorneys for former FBI Director James Comey filed a motion to dismiss his indictment for the same reason. Comey’s lawyers argued his indictment was “fatally flawed,” as Halligan, who is also the prosecutor in Comey’s case, “was invalidly appointed to her position as interim U.S. Attorney.” The judge in Comey’s case, Biden-appointed Judge Michael S. Nachmanoff, subsequently ordered the motion to an out-of-district judge.

Democrats have called the indictments of both Comey and James acts of political retaliation from the Trump administration, with Trump repeatedly calling for the prosecution of his political opponents. Trump urged Attorney General Pam Bondi that “we can’t delay any longer,” saying “JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW,” in a Truth Social post in late September, ahead of the indictments.

LEAKED SIGNAL TEXTS FROM LETITIA JAMES PROSECUTOR DON’T VIOLATE ETHICS RULES, EXPERTS SAY

James’s lawyers also filed a separate motion Thursday calling for an order from the court telling the parties involved in the case to follow the rules of criminal procedure. They pointed to leaked Signal messages between Halligan and a reporter.

James’s counsel asked for the order “to prevent future disclosures of investigative and case materials, as well as to prevent further extrajudicial statements to the media and public concerning this case and any parties or witnesses.”