Appeals court won't hear arguments on Fani Willis' role in Georgia Trump case until after election

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis arrives during a hearing on the Georgia election interference case, Friday, March, 1, 2024, in Atlanta. A hearing on the appeal of a lower court ruling allowing Willis to continue prosecuting the election interference case against former President Donald Trump is set for December, after the November general election. (AP Photo/Alex Slitz, Pool)

A Georgia appeals court has set a December hearing for arguments on the appeal of a lower court ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to continue to prosecute the election interference case she brought against former President Donald Trump.

Trump and other defendants had asked the Georgia Court of Appeals to hold oral arguments in the case, and the court on Tuesday set those arguments for Dec. 5. That timing means the lower court proceedings against Trump, which are on hold while the appeal is pending, will not resume before the November general election, when Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.

The appeal is to be decided by a three-judge panel of the intermediate appeals court, which will then have until mid-March to rule. The judges assigned to the case are Trenton Brown, Todd Markle and Benjamin Land. Once the panel rules, the losing side could ask the Georgia Supreme Court to consider an appeal.