Lawyers for former President Donald Trump submit a court filing Monday in Fulton County, Georgia, asking Judge Scott McAfee dismiss the election interference and racketeering charges filed against him by District Attorney Fani Willis on the grounds that he is protected from prosecution because he was president at the time he sought to overturn the 2020 election results. Trump’s lawyers have made the same argument in a civil lawsuit brought by columnist E. Jean Carroll and in the federal election interference criminal case brought by special counsel Jack Smith. Here’s the latest legal news involving the former president who hopes to be reelected to the White House in 2024.

Georgia election interference

Key players: Judge ,Trump lawyer , Fulton County District Attorney , special counsel , columnist , former Trump lawyer , District Court Judge

• In a Monday court filing, Sadow asked McAfee to dismiss all the charges against Trump in Georgia due to the fact that he was president when he sought to overturn the 2020 election results in the state, .

• “The indictment in this case charges President Trump for acts that lie at the heart of his official responsibilities as President. The indictment is barred by presidential immunity and should be dismissed with prejudice,” the motion stated.

• Trump’s lawyers have made the same argument — that being president protects one from prosecution — to judges in the civil defamation case brought by Carroll and in the federal election interference charges brought by Smith.

• In a separate filing Trump’s lawyers wrote that he “lacked fair notice that his advocacy in the instance of the 2020 presidential election could be criminalized.”

• Monday was the deadline McAfee set for pre-trial motions in the case in which Willis charged Trump and 18 others with numerous felonies for their attempts to overturn Joe Biden’s victory in the state. So far, four of the defendants have pleaded guilty and agreed to testify for the prosecution at trial.

• Willis is hoping to start the trial in August. McAfee has yet to establish a firm start date, but last week to review evidence in the case.

Why it matters: Trump’s argument that he cannot be prosecuted or sued for actions he undertook while president presents a major test for the U.S. court system. On Tuesday, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments from Smith’s team and Trump’s lawyers on that question. Chutkan and lower courts in New York have already ruled that presidential immunity does not offer him blanket protection, but Chutkan paused the proceedings in the election interference case last month so that Trump’s lawyers could appeal her ruling on presidential immunity. Because of the importance of Tuesday’s hearing, Trump plans to be in attendance.

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