The announcement was made on Wednesday that the Georgia Court of Appeals will be hearing an appeal regarding a ruling that permitted Fani T. Willis, the district attorney in Fulton County, to continue leading the prosecution of former President Donald J. Trump on charges related to election interference.
The decision to hear the appeal, made by a three-judge panel, is expected to cause further delays in the Georgia criminal case against Mr. Trump and 14 others. This delay makes it less likely that the case will proceed to trial before the November election.
The brief announcement of three sentences reopens the possibility of Ms. Willis being disqualified from this significant case, which is one of the most important state criminal cases in the nation’s history.
The main issue at hand is a romantic relationship that Ms. Willis had with Nathan Wade, a lawyer she hired to handle Mr. Trump’s prosecution. Defense attorneys argued that this relationship created an unacceptable conflict of interest, leading to demands for Ms. Willis and her entire office to be removed from the case.
However, on March 15, Judge Scott McAfee of Fulton County Superior Court ruled that Ms. Willis could remain involved in the case if Mr. Wade stepped down. Mr. Wade resigned shortly after the judge’s ruling was issued.
Steven H. Sadow, the lead counsel for Mr. Trump in Georgia, stated on Wednesday that his client is eager to present arguments to the Georgia Court of Appeals on why the case should be dismissed and why Fulton County D.A. Willis should be disqualified due to her alleged misconduct in what he deems an unjustified political persecution.
A spokesperson for Ms. Willis’s office declined to provide a comment regarding the recent action taken by the appeals court.
