GEORGIA, USA — Oral arguments in the appeal over a ruling that upended the election interference case against now President-elect Donald Trump and his allies were canceled in a one-sentence order released by the Georgia Court of Appeals Monday.
The arguments, which were scheduled for Dec. 5, would have been an integral step in an ongoing appeal that could determine if Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis could continue to stay on the case.
In its order, the Court wrote that those oral arguments were "hereby canceled until further order of this Court."
The Fulton County District Attorney's Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
11Alive's Zach Merchant and Grace King spoke with attorneys involved with the case minutes after the order was made public. Harry MacDougald, who represents defendant Jeff Clark, said he wasn't immediately sure why the Court made this move.
Another attorney said that none of the parties filed a motion seeking the cancellation, meaning that the appellate court made this decision on its own.
Two seasoned Atlanta lawyers uninvolved with the case speculated that the Court of Appeals could be reacting to Mr. Trump's recent election victory, citing longstanding Department of Justice policy that bars federal prosecutors from pursuing criminal cases against sitting presidents. While untested, many legal observers believe the same prohibition could apply to cases brought by state prosecutors.
But both were clear to say they couldn't say for sure at this juncture what the appellate court's motivations were or what the next steps in this case will be.
The appeal stemmed from drama during the case of Trump and his allies, who are accused of attempting to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia.
During the case, progress eventually stalled in January after defense attorneys revealed Willis had shared a romantic relationship with the special prosecutor she chose to lead the case, Nathan Wade.
The ensuing legal battle over the relationship led to weeks of, at times, sordid court filings and testimony.
Ultimately, this led to a motion to disqualify the district attorney. Fulton County Judge Scott McAfee gave prosecutors two options to resolve the issue and continue the case -- Wade could resign, or Willis could remove herself from the case.
Wade resigned from the case. After he resigned, Trump's attorneys filed an appeal, arguing the judge should have disqualified the Fulton County District Attorney's Office and dismissed the case.
Judge McAfee granted them a certificate of immediate review, allowing the defense team to immediately pursue a challenge to the ruling before the Georgia Court of Appeals.
The election interference case has since been on hold until the disqualification appeal is resolved, but without a new date for the arguments, the case remains up in the air.
The latest movement in the Georgia case comes two weeks after the 2024 election, where Trump swiped yet another victory.
It also comes after Special Counsel Jack Smith evaluates how to wind down the two federal cases against Donald Trump before his second term, according to reports from the Associated Press. The report added that it stems from Justice Department policy that condemns prosecuting sitting presidents.
It's unclear if Georgia prosecutors will take a similar approach or how the case will proceed.