Judge orders Lindsey Halligan to stop 'masquerading' as US attorney

RICHMOND, Va. (CN) — Lindsey Halligan must stop identifying herself as the U.S. Attorney of the Eastern District of Virginia, a federal judge said Tuesday, as her position was posted as vacant by the court’s chief judge.

In an 18-page court order, U.S. District Judge David J. Novak called Halligan’s arguments that her appointment to the position was valid, “unavailing,” and emphasized that her decision to continue calling herself the court’s U.S. attorney violates existing court orders.

“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, a Donald Trump appointee, wrote.

The judge ordered the removal of the words “United States Attorney” from government filings in a case Halligan was involved in and prevented her from representing herself as the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia unless appointed or confirmed by the Senate.

In November, a federal judge tasked with resolving the issue of Halligan’s appointment by the Fourth Circuit determined that Halligan was unlawfully appointed and dismissed her cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie said then her appointment as interim U.S. attorney violated laws that require the Department of Justice to have the Senate confirm the prosecutors they put forward.

“Ms. Halligan has not only ignored Judge Currie’s rulings, she has also turned a blind eye to an order from the Chief Judge of the Fourth Circuit,” Novak said. “The court finds it inconceivable that the Department of Justice, which holds a duty to faithfully execute the laws of the United States — even those with which it may have disagreement — would repeatedly ignore court orders, while simultaneously prosecuting citizens for breaking the law.”

Halligan is not allowed to continue representing herself as the court’s U.S. attorney after having been found to be unlawfully appointed, Novak said, and has chosen to ignore valid court orders. If the court were to allow the Department of Justice to pick and choose which orders it wanted to follow, the “system of justice would crumble,” Novak said.

He declined to refer her for disciplinary action and further investigation “in light of her inexperience,” but said the court will initiate further actions if Halligan ignores his order or those determining that her appointment was invalid.

“Ms. Halligan’s response asserts that she is free to act in an unlawful capacity, because she disagrees that she does so unlawfully. But that’s not how our legal system works,” Novak added.

Chief Judge M. Hannah Lauck also entered an order seeking to fill Halligan’s position. The Senate has not confirmed President Donald Trump’s nomination of Halligan to serve as the U.S. attorney, she said, and the interim timeframe  —  120 days — has expired. The court is now looking for an attorney to fill the position and is seeking applications, the Barack Obama appointee wrote.

Halligan, Trump’s pick to fill the role, served as acting U.S. attorney from September until November 2025, and her tenure was loaded with controversy. She assumed the interim position after her predecessor Erik Siebert resigned, refusing to raise criminal charges against James and Comey. Halligan picked up the mantle and indicted both James and Comey, but the cases were dismissed by Currie’s orders that she had been installed illegally.

Halligan was nominated by the president for a permanent position as the court’s top prosecutor, but the Senate has not confirmed her, and the state’s Democratic senators have signaled that they would withhold their blue slip approval.

A representative for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia declined to comment.

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