A federal judge on Tuesday disqualified Trump appointee Bill Essayli from serving as First Assistant US Attorney in California. US District Judge John Seabright, a George W. Bush appointee, ruled that Essayli had unlawfully remained beyond his 120 day temporary appointment, as reported by The Gateway Pundit.

The ruling marked another courtroom setback for Essayli, who previously faced disqualification from a different prosecutorial role. Seabright ruled last October that Essayli had been serving unlawfully as Acting US Attorney.

President Donald Trump selected Essayli, a California Republican assemblyman, to serve as acting US attorney for the Central District of California in 2025. Essayli has since been serving as the district’s top prosecutor.

BREAKING: Bill Essayli responds to a US Judge disqualifying him from serving as F.A. US attorney:

"We respectfully disagree with the court’s order. The President and the Attorney General have every right to select supervisors within the Justice Department. Importantly, today’s order is automatically stayed so the government can seek a full stay and maintain the status quo pending our appeal. Ultimately, this question will be decided by the Supreme Court, and I look forward to serving in my current role until then.” — Matt Finn (@MattFinnFNC) October 28, 2026

Essayli is a staunch Trump supporter who has aggressively investigated and prosecuted illegal aliens and criminals. His work has placed him at the center of the president’s law and order agenda in California.

Seabright’s ruling last October removed Essayli from his role as Acting US Attorney. However, the judge allowed him to remain First Assistant US Attorney and said he could continue performing the functions of that office.

That arrangement allowed Essayli to continue serving as the leading prosecutor in the Central District of California. The source described him as highly effective in carrying out Trump’s law and order priorities.

Essayli was also in court Tuesday fighting California over 20,000 ballots mailed to noncitizens. That court battle was unfolding as Seabright again moved to disqualify him from his prosecutorial position.

The judge’s Tuesday evening order disqualified Essayli from his role as First Assistant US Attorney. However, Seabright said the order would not take immediate effect, allowing Essayli to remain in place for the time being.

Essayli quickly responded to the decision and made clear that he intends to fight the ruling. “We respectfully disagree with the court’s order,” he said in a comment provided to Fox News.

Essayli defended the administration’s authority to choose officials who supervise work inside the Justice Department. “The President and the Attorney General have every right to select supervisors within the Justice Department .”

He also stressed that the order had been stayed while the government pursued further court action. That stay, he said, would preserve the existing arrangement while the government seeks a full stay and proceeds with an appeal.

“Importantly, today’s order is automatically stayed so the government can seek a full stay and maintain the status quo pending our appeal,” Essayli said. The immediate pause means the disqualification will not instantly remove him from his current duties.

Essayli predicted that the legal dispute would eventually reach the nation’s highest court. “Ultimately, this question will be decided by the Supreme Court, and I look forward to serving in my current role until then,” he said.

The Essayli dispute follows several other cases involving Trump appointed US attorneys whose authority was challenged. The administration has bypassed Senate confirmation while Senator Chuck Grassley has continued using the Senate’s blue slip custom.

Last year, a judge disqualified Sigal Chattah, Trump’s Acting US Attorney in Nevada, and ruled that her appointment was invalid. Trump had initially appointed Chattah as the Interim US Attorney in Nevada.

Shortly before her 120 day interim appointment expired, Chattah resigned from that position. She was then appointed Acting US Attorney for the District of Nevada, prompting prosecutors opposing Trump to file motions seeking her disqualification.

Those prosecutors argued that the maneuver used to move Chattah into the acting role was unlawful. Her case became another front in the broader battle over how the administration fills important federal prosecutorial posts without Senate confirmation.

A similar ruling came last summer from U.S. District Judge Mathew Brann, an Obama appointee. Brann said Alina Habba was “not lawfully holding the Office of US Attorney” in New Jersey.

Habba ultimately resigned as Acting US Attorney for New Jersey. Her departure added another name to the growing list of Trump prosecutors blocked or removed following judicial challenges to their appointments.

Trump previously said he would file a lawsuit to prevent Grassley from blocking confirmation of US attorneys through the blue slip custom. For now, Essayli says he will remain in his current role while the government pursues its appeal and seeks a full stay.

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