The Supreme Court on Monday refused to take up a challenge to President Trump’s appointment of Matthew Whitaker as acting attorney general.
The vehicle for the challenge to Whitaker’s appointment was a case against the attorney general, then Jeff Sessions, filed by a Nevada man convicted of nonviolent felonies who was seeking restoration of his right to possess a firearm.
Lawyers for the man, Barry Michaels, asked the high court to substitute Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein as acting attorney general, contending the appointment of Whitaker violated the Constitution and federal statutes.
Trump named Whitaker as acting attorney general after Sessions was forced to resign in November.
“This is an extraordinary case in which the identity of the successor is both contested and has important implications for the administration of justice nationally,” lawyers for Michaels wrote in court filings. “This motion seeks to resolve the dispute.”
In addition to denying the request to substitute Rosenstein as acting attorney general, the justices also turned down Michaels’ appeal.
After Trump tapped Whitaker to replace Sessions, the appointment quickly came under scrutiny and prompted several legal challenges.
A case filed by Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh in November argues Whitaker’s appointment violates the Constitution’s Appointments Clause and a statute dictating the succession of the attorney general. Three Senate Democrats also filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the constitutionality of Trump’s appointment of Whitaker.
The Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, meanwhile, upheld Whitaker’s temporary role as acting attorney general in a 20-page opinion last year.
Trump has since nominated William Barr to serve as attorney general.
[Read more: Attorney general nominee William Barr: ‘Vitally important’ that Robert Mueller finish his investigation]
