A federal judge says he will decide whether President Donald Trump’s pick to lead federal prosecutors in New Jersey, Alina Habba, has the legal authority to continue operating as the state’s acting U.S. attorney.

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — President Donald Trump has moved to keep his former defense attorney Alina Habba on the job as the top federal prosecutor in New Jersey, even though a panel of judges refused to extend her tenure.

A federal judge on Friday deferred ruling on Alina Habba's legal authority as a prosecutor after President Trump tapped her to lead the U.S. attorney's office for New Jersey. The big picture: A lawyer sought to get a criminal case in New Jersey dismissed by questioning Habba's legitimacy to lead the U.