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A three-judge panel of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday upheld a lower court’s determination that Sigal Chattah was never lawfully serving as the top federal prosecutor in Nevada. The tribunal found that the Justice Department’s use of appointment and delegation mechanisms to keep Chattah in the position after her interim term expired violated federal law and lacked proper authority.
Chattah initially took office as interim U.S. attorney effective April 1, 2025, under a temporary appointment lasting up to 120 days. As that period neared expiration in late July, then-Attorney General Pam Bondi redesignated Chattah as first assistant U.S. attorney following her resignation from the interim post, arguing this move allowed her to serve as acting prosecutor under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998.
The panel unanimously rejected both grounds the Justice Department relied upon. The court determined that a first assistant could only automatically become acting U.S. attorney if already holding that position when a vacancy occurred, and that an attorney general cannot create a de facto acting prosecutor by delegating all functions and duties to another individual. “Nor can the Attorney General create a de facto Acting U.S. Attorney by delegating all of the functions and duties of the U.S. Attorney to someone else,” wrote U.S. Circuit Judge Eric Miller, a Trump appointee.
Federal public defenders challenged Chattah’s authority across multiple unrelated criminal prosecutions, contending her appointment was unlawful and seeking dismissal of the cases. U.S. District Judge David Campbell sided with the defense in September, prompting the Trump administration to appeal to the Ninth Circuit.
The disqualification ruling removes Chattah from supervising three criminal cases. Trump did not nominate Chattah for the permanent Nevada position, instead selecting George Kelesis in February 2026. The decision marks another judicial setback for the administration’s strategy of maintaining temporary appointees as chief federal prosecutors without Senate confirmation, following a December ruling by the Third Circuit invalidating the appointment of Trump’s former personal lawyer Alina Habba in New Jersey.
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