Roger Rogoff filing lawsuit for 'unlawful firing' by Trump

Roger Rogoff, the former prosecutor appointed by judges to the role of U.S. Attorney in the Western District of Washington, has filed a lawsuit in federal court against President Donald Trump, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and the U.S. Department of Justice.

On July 15, Rogoff was fired by Trump after only 54 minutes on the job and received word of his termination via email in the lobby of the U.S District Courthouse in Seattle.

The lawsuit and preliminary injunction, filed Tuesday in Seattle, seeks to challenge the firing and states that Rogoff is the "validly appointed" U.S. attorney until a successor is named through presidential nomination and Senate confirmation.

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“The President’s actions violate the law, and they ignore the protections of the Constitution of the United States," Rogoff said in a statement. "His removal of me, like his removal of other court-appointed U.S. Attorneys across the country, is illegal and cannot stand."

What position was Rogoff fired from?

On July 15, Rogoff was sworn in to be the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington state, taking over from First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd. Trump tapped Floyd for the position in October 2025 and his term expired in February.

Floyd's term ended only four months after being appointed because Trump did not formally nominate him, instead appointing him as interim attorney (with a term limit of 120 days, per US Code 546, that ended on Feb. 3, 2026) then as first assistant U.S. attorney. Floyd most recently served as special counsel for immigration enforcement in the FBI Office of General Counsel.

Rogoff was unanimously appointed by federal judges to the position after Floyd's temporary appointment ended.

On the day of Rogoff's firing, U.S. Acting Attorney General Blanche wrote in a social media post that "(Western District of Washington) judges abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration. Roger Rogoff has been fired by the President."

Who is Roger Rogoff?

Rogoff is a former King County Superior Court judge, King County prosecutor, and federal prosecutor. He most recently served as the state's first director of the Office of Independent Investigations (OII) before resigning earlier this year. The OII was created in 2021 to investigate cases of deadly force used by police. Former Gov. Jay Inslee appointed Rogoff to the agency in June 2022.

How was Rogoff nominated?

Presidents appoint the U.S. attorneys, and the nomination requires Senate confirmation — except in temporary or interim appointments like Floyd's. If the temporary appointment term expires before official confirmation, federal statute states that district judges can name a U.S. attorney.

The last Western District U.S. attorney to be nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate was Nicholas W. Brown in 2021, according to the court. Both Trump and former President Joe Biden failed to carry out the process.

"The President has not yet nominated a permanent United States Attorney for this District," Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo wrote in a general order for the court.

After Floyd was never formally nominated to the position and exceeded his temporary appointment, the Western District Court elected on July 15 to fill the "longstanding United States Attorney vacancy" with the unanimous appointment of Rogoff.

Zachary Fletcher is a trending news reporter with USA TODAY Network's Washington state team. Keep up with him on X (@zdfletch), BlueSky (@zfletcher.bsky.social) or reach him at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Roger Rogoff filing lawsuit for 'unlawful firing' by Trump