A federal judge dismissed the indictments against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday.

The judge found that the appointment of interim US Attorney Lindsey Halligan in Alexandria, Virginia, was invalid.

Halligan was handpicked for the role amid increasing pressure to bring criminal cases against political opponents, including Comey and James.

“The Attorney General’s attempt to install Halligan as Interim US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia was invalid,” Judge Cameron McGowan Currie wrote in her Monday order.

According to Currie, all actions flowing from Halligan’s defective appointment, including the indictments against Comey and James, were unlawful exercises of executive power and were therefore set aside.

The judge dismissed the cases without prejudice, leaving open the possibility that fresh cases against Comey and James could be filed again, alleging the same conduct.

CNN has reached out to the Justice Department for comment.

Halligan, a former White House adviser, was selected for the role after the previous interim US attorney was removed amid mounting pressure to bring cases against Comey and James.

In the cases involving Comey and James, defence attorneys argued that the 120-day period during which an interim US attorney is allowed to serve before Senate confirmation or approval by district judges had already expired when Halligan assumed office.

They said this meant her appointment was unlawful.

Currie wrote that the unlawful appointment should invalidate Halligan’s actions, including presenting the indictments to grand juries.

Prosecutors working under Halligan argued that Attorney General Pam Bondi had full authority to appoint any qualified person to the position and that the 120-day limit functioned merely as a review mechanism for interim US attorneys.

“The implications of a contrary conclusion are extraordinary,” Currie wrote.

“It would mean the government could send any private citizen off the street, attorney or not, into the grand jury room to secure an indictment, so long as the Attorney General gives approval after the fact. That cannot be the law.