Fla. Bar: No investigation of Lindsey Halligan over Comey, James cases

by · UPI

March 6 (UPI) -- Lindsey Halligan is not under investigation by The Florida Bar, the organization clarified Friday.

The Bar said it "erroneously" reported Thursday that there was an ethics investigation underway against Halligan, who was an acting U.S. attorney in Virginia but her appointment was deemed illegal.

"In response to an inquiry from a complainant, The Florida Bar wrote a letter to the complainant erroneously stating that there is a pending Bar investigation of member Lindsay Halligan," said Jennifer Krell Davis, director of communications for the Florida bar, in a statement to The Hill and USA Today.

"There is no such pending Bar investigation of Lindsay Halligan," she said. "In this case, The Florida Bar received a complaint against Lindsay Halligan and, consistent with standard practice, the Bar is monitoring the ongoing legal proceedings underlying the complaint."

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An unnamed person familiar with the situation told The Hill that the bar has opened a "monitor file" on Halligan, which is standard for when an attorney is involved in a legal proceeding.

The file helps make sure that the bar association checks back on the outcome of the proceeding.

An appeals court is reviewing Halligan's disqualification as U.S. attorney by a federal judge.

The Campaign for Accountability released a statement responding to the update from Executive Director Michelle Kuppersmith.

"CfA has not heard directly from The Florida Bar, but it's hard to reconcile this latest statement with the bar counsel's previous letter saying there is an investigation pending," she said in a statement.

"If there is no longer an investigation into Halligan, the question is why not, given that three judges indicated she engaged in conduct that appears to violate ethics rules," she said.

Earlier Friday, the organization reported that it had been told there was an investigation by the Florida bar against Halligan.

Halligan, Trump's former personal attorney, brought cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, both of which failed.

On Nov. 24, U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie in South Carolina dismissed both cases and ruled that Attorney General Pam Bondi's installation of Halligan as interim U.S. attorney was invalid. But Halligan continued to work as a U.S. attorney in the Justice Department.

In January, Halligan stepped down from the position after a U.S. District Judge David Novak ordered her to stop "masquerading as a U.S. attorney in Virginia.

The Campaign for Accountability had requested disciplinary proceedings against Halligan over her conduct while acting as a U.S. attorney in the cases against Comey and James.

It sent a similar request to The Virginia Bar about Halligan, who worked as an insurance lawyer in Florida before Trump's second administration.

"We already have an investigation pending," The Florida Bar said in its letter, which was also sent to Halligan, according to a copy reviewed by The Washington Post.

If The Florida Bar ever determines that she acted improperly, she could be disbarred in the state.

The Department of Justice on Wednesday proposed a change to federal regulations for state bar investigations of its attorneys.

The proposal was posted to the Federal Register and said, "Before a current or former Department lawyer may participate in any investigative steps initiated by the bar disciplinary authority ... in response to allegations that a current or former Department attorney violated an ethics rule while engaging in that attorney's federal duties, the Department will have the right to review the allegations in the first instance and shall request that the bar disciplinary authority suspend any parallel investigations until the completion of the Department's review."

The rule change is necessary because "over the past several years, political activists have weaponized the bar complaint and investigation process," the memo said.

Halligan, who had no previous trial experience, was appointed to replace Erik Siebert, who resigned the position in September amid concerns he would be forced out for failing to prosecute James.

Interim U.S. attorneys can only stay in their positions for 120 days, and Siebert had already exceeded his time without confirmation.

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Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., speaks to the press outside the U.S. Capitol on Thursday. Earlier today, President Donald Trump announced Mullin would replace Kristi Noem as Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo