Hours before the petition was filed, the president-elect spoke on the phone with Samuel Alito, who clarified that the impending appeal was not mentioned during the call.

Levi clerked for Alito 13 years ago and currently works as a Big Law partner. He already served in the first Trump administration, as chief of staff to then–Attorney General Bill Barr. He worked for GOP Sen.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito confirmed on Wednesday that he talked with President-elect Donald Trump just days before possibly ruling on his immunity claims connected with his New York hush