Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis faced a legal setback this week after a Georgia judge declined to allow her office to intervene in ongoing litigation over attorney fee reimbursement linked to the now-dismissed election interference case against Donald Trump and several co-defendants. The ruling from Judge Scott McAfee permits the fee recovery proceedings to continue following the collapse of the high-profile prosecution last year, according to reports.
McAfee ruled that Willis’s office lacked legal standing to participate because she had already been disqualified from the underlying case. However, he said that the state was being represented by a temporary prosecutor appointed after her removal, meaning the office’s interests were already adequately represented in the litigation.
The judge did allow Fulton County itself to join the case, noting that the county funds most of the district attorney’s office and could ultimately bear responsibility for any reimbursement awarded by the court.
The dispute centers on a 2025 Georgia statute that allows defendants to recover legal fees if a prosecutor is disqualified and the case is later dismissed. If upheld, the ruling could expose taxpayers to significant financial liability depending on the outcome.
Trump and several co-defendants are seeking more than $6.2 million in legal expenses under the law.
Willis argued that the statute is unconstitutional and claimed her disqualification was not the reason the case was ultimately dismissed. The court declined to pause the reimbursement proceedings at this stage.
Willis was removed from the prosecution in late 2024 after defense attorneys alleged that her romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade created a conflict of interest. They also cited her public statements about the case.
In 2025, the Georgia Supreme Court declined to review her removal, and a replacement prosecutor was appointed by the state’s prosecuting authority. The case was later dismissed.
Trump’s legal team welcomed the ruling, arguing that the court correctly rejected Willis’s attempt to intervene in the fee dispute.
Trump also criticized Willis following the state Supreme Court’s decision not to hear her appeal regarding her disqualification, making strong public remarks about her conduct.
The next phase of the litigation will assess whether the requested fees are reasonable under Georgia law. A judge will review the claims, including Trump’s request for millions in reimbursement, a process that could take weeks or months and may still be appealed.
In 2023, Willis brought charges against Trump and multiple co-defendants under Georgia’s racketeering statute, alleging efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the state.
The case was eventually dismissed after a series of legal challenges, and in late 2024, the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled that the lower court had erred in allowing Willis and her former special prosecutor to withdraw from the case voluntarily.
The appellate court concluded that the appearance of impropriety required full disqualification of Willis and her office. Willis sought further review but was unsuccessful.
The ongoing fee litigation remains separate from the original criminal proceedings and focuses solely on whether the legal costs sought by defendants are reasonable under state law. Because the statute ties reimbursement to prosecutorial disqualification, the case could set a precedent for how similar claims are handled in future Georgia prosecutions. The court’s eventual decision may carry significant financial implications for Fulton County and could prompt further appeals from either side.
As the process continues, both sides are expected to submit detailed billing records and legal arguments before the court issues its final determination on reimbursement amounts and eligibility under the statute. Appeals may follow depending on how the judge interprets the law and the evidence presented during the proceedings.
