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A federal prosecutor in Seattle who was sacked by President Trump last week after barely an hour on the job is challenging his removal in court, setting the stage for an unprecedented legal battle that could determine who has the power to fire court-appointed U.S. attorneys.
Roger Rogoff was fired as the top prosecutor for the Western District of Washington last Wednesday, after he was unanimously appointed by federal judges to fill a vacancy in the U.S. attorney’s office.
News of his dismissal came in an email from the White House Presidential Personnel Office less than an hour after he was sworn in, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday.
The complaint, which names Trump and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, argues Rogoff’s firing was unlawful because the president does not have the authority to “nullify the district’s court’s appointment power” granted by the Appointments Clause.
It also argues that the Trump administration has violated a federal statute governing how vacancies are filled and asks a federal judge to reinstate him as the “validly appointed” pick until a successor is chosen through the presidential nomination and Senate confirmation process.
“By purporting to fire Mr. Rogoff—and apparently committing to firing anyone else a district court appoints without ‘the support of POTUS’ — the President has attempted to negate Congress’s exercise of its constitutionally enumerated power,” attorneys representing Rogoff wrote, referring to a social media post from Blanche.
They also warned that allowing the firing to stand would permit the Trump administration to evade the Senate’s advice-and-consent role “indefinitely.”
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment.
Federal law states that the head of the Justice Department can appoint an interim replacement for up to 120 days when a vacancy arises for a U.S. attorney. Once that time is up, district court judges may appoint someone to “serve until the vacancy is filled,” which is how Rogoff came to lead the prosecutor’s office.
The DOJ has maintained that Trump retains the power to fire any U.S. attorney, regardless of who appointed them.
“District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them,” Blanche wrote on the social platform X. “WDWA [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.”
Former immigration judge Neil Floyd had been sworn in as interim lead of the district in October but was never formally nominated by Trump. When his 120-day clock ran out, the administration shifted his title to first assistant U.S. attorney.
It wasn’t the first time the Trump administration has used the legal maneuver to allow someone to keep acting as the de facto U.S. attorney while the role officially remained empty.
Trump’s former personal defense attorney Alina Habba was in a similar position when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit determined in December that she had unlawfully remained in the role past her term’s expiration date.
A trio of prosecutors selected by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi to replace Habba were also disqualified.
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