Who is Alina Habba? Why ‘unserious’ tag hit Donald Trump loyalist’s appointment as New Jersey Attorney?

US President Donald Trump recently promoted his former defense lawyer Alina Habba to interim US Attorney for New Jersey, her home state.

Alina Habba, who represented Donald Trump for a long time, "will fight tirelessly to secure a legal system, that is both ‘Fair and Just’ for the wonderful people of New Jersey,” the POTUS announced in a post on his Truth Social platform.

"I am honored to serve my home state of New Jersey as Interim U.S. Attorney and I am grateful to President Trump for entrusting me with this tremendous responsibility. Just like I did during my time as President Trump’s personal attorney, I will continue to fight for truth and justice" Alina Habba who represented Trump in his New York civil fraud case and other lawsuits wrote.

Before stepping into law, Alina Habba took a job in the fashion industry, and worked for one of America's premier brands - Marc Jacob, reported BBC.

Who is Alina Habba?

Alina Habba has no prosecutorial experience and ran a small law firm previously specializing in civil litigation but now she will oversee more than 150 attorneys.

Alina Habba has represented Donald Trump for the longest time, and in several high-profile lawsuits before his 2024 election victory. She was also a member of Trump's legal team during his hush-money trial in New York in 2024, where he was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records.

The new US attorney will take over the interim post from John Giordano, whom Trump said he's naming to be the US ambassador for the southwestern African country of Namibia.

A partner in a small New Jersey law firm near Trump’s Bedminster golf course, Alina Habba has defended the POTUS in several civil lawsuits, reported news agency AP.

During the Trump's defamation trial, Judge Lewis A. Kaplan chided Alina Habba for botching procedure, misstating the law asking about off-limits topics and objecting after he ruled.

Alina Habba has also worked as a merchandiser at fashion company Marc Jacobs for two years before attending Widener University Commonwealth Law School in Pennsylvania, graduating in 2011.

Habba served a yearlong clerkship with then-New Jersey Superior Court Judge Eugene Codey Jr. then worked in private practice for eight years at two separate firms before starting her own practice in 2020, focusing on civil and commercial litigation.

Alina Habba's stint as Donald Trump's attorney

Alina Habba was one of Donald Trump’s most visible defense attorneys, appearing on cable TV news as his ‘legal spokesperson.’ She also represented Trump in 2024 in the defamation case involving E. Jean Carroll.

In addition to the hush money case, Alina Habba also represented Trump in a $100 million (£79 million) lawsuit against The New York Times and his niece, Mary Trump. He had accused Mary of an ‘insidious plot’ to obtain his tax records. The case was ultimately dismissed, and Trump was ordered to pay nearly $400,000 in legal fees.

‘Unserious’ – Social Media Calls Out Habba Appointment

Several social media users were quick to react to Alina Habba's appointment as US Attoryney for New Jersey. One ‘pro-Trump’ X (formerly Twitter) user shared a video of Habba jumping into a pool of balls and wrote, “This is Alina Habba, the new U.S. Attorney for New Jersey. What an unserious selection.”

Another X users whose bio defines that person as a political analyst wrote, “Alina Habba, who said veterans “are not fit to have a job,” is the new US Attorney for the District of New Jersey?”

Another X user wrote, “Donald Trump is promoting failed lawyer Alina Habba to act as the Interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey. Only in Trump's America does sycophancy outweigh meritocracy.”