Case Explained: USA V. SALAZAR DEL REAL

Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Filed: 2026-08-17 Docket: 2:25-cr-00240- The ninth-circuit affirmed the district court’s order disqualifying Sigal Chattah from supervising the prosecutions of three defendants, holding that the Attorney General cannot bypass Senate confirmation requirements by designating an individual as a first assistant to a vacant U.S. Attorney office after the vacancy has already occurred. The court ruled that under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 (FVRA), the automatic succession provision for a “first assistant” applies only to the person holding that specific position at the exact moment the vacancy arises; it does not permit the executive branch to appoint a new first assistant after the fact and immediately elevate them to Acting U.S. Attorney. Furthermore, the court held that the FVRA serves as the exclusive means for temporarily authorizing an acting official to perform the duties of such an office, thereby prohibiting the Attorney General from delegating all functions and powers of the U.S. Attorney to a single person to create a de facto appointment. The panel dismissed the defendants’ cross-appeals challenging the denial of their motions to dismiss the indictments for lack of appellate jurisdiction, determining that the validity of Chattah’s appointment is not inextricably intertwined with the appropriate remedy for such an appointment, and thus reviewing one order does not require reviewing the other. As a practical consequence, the disqualification order stands, preventing Chattah from supervising these cases, while the indictments remain valid and the prosecutions may proceed under Assistant U.S. Attorneys who derive their authority directly from the Attorney General rather than through Chattah’s supervision. Do It For The Case Law is a news reporting service. Nothing in this episode constitutes legal advice.