Who is Alina Habba? Trump's ex-personal lawyer, ‘tireless advocate for justice,’ disqualified as New Jersey attorney

Donald Trump's former personal attorney Alina Habba, has been disqualified from serving as attorney for New Jersey, a federal appeals court in the US ruled on Monday. Calling Habba a “tireless advocate for justice” in his statement last year and who had been "unwavering in her loyalty," Trump had named Habba as interim US Attorney General for New Jersey in March.

On Monday, 1 December, a three-judge panel of the Philadelphia-based 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals determined that Habba was unlawfully appointed as the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey and disqualified her from supervising cases.

Who is Alina Habba?

Alina Habba – 41-years-old – was once a relatively lesser-known litigator who came to represent Trump in some of his most perilous cases – including one, where she notably clashed with a judge during a defamation trial, mentioned a report by BBC.

After graduating from university, Habba took a job in the fashion industry, working at Marc Jacobs - one of America's premier brands. She returned to college after several years in the industry, earning her law degree from Widener University, a small school in Pennsylvania, in 2010.

She went on to serve briefly as a clerk for then–New Jersey Superior Court Judge Eugene Codey Jr before shifting to private practice. After several years in the field, she founded her own law firm in 2020.

A mother of three – Habba – joined Trump's personal legal team in 2021 after reportedly meeting him at his country club in Bedminster, New Jersey - where her law firm is also based.

The latest disqualification of Habba as New Jersey attorney comes amid the push by Trump's Republican administration to keep Habba as the acting US attorney for the state – a powerful post charged with enforcing federal criminal and civil law, reported AP.

What is the controversy about Alina Habba?

Earlier this year, in August, a federal judge ruled that Habba’s appointment was “unlawful,” though the judge’s order was on hold as the legal proceedings continued in an appeals court.

In the summer ruling, US District Judge Matthew W. Brann raised concerns with Trump naming Habba as interim US attorney in March – a role that can only be held for 120 days. According to a report by NBC News, Judge Brann had said in his ruling that while Trump nominated Habba to serve as the permanent attorney, the Senate did not take up her nomination.

“It is apparent that the current administration has been frustrated by some of the legal and political barriers to getting its appointees in place. Its efforts to elevate its preferred candidate for US attorney for the district of New Jersey, Alina Habba, to the role of acting US attorney demonstrate the difficulties it has faced – yet the citizens of New Jersey and the loyal employees in the US attorney’s Office deserve some clarity and stability,” the court wrote in a 32-page opinion on Monday, 1 December.