Fani Willis ethics case may reverberate long after judge decision: Experts

Over the last few weeks, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, who is leading the prosecution against former President Donald Trump and his allies over alleged election interference in Georgia, has been put on the hot seat after she was accused by multiple defendants' attorneys of a conflict of interest with a fellow prosecutor.

Willis and Nathan Wade admitted in court to having a romantic relationship but have contended their relationship «has never involved direct or indirect financial benefit» to the DA.

Legal experts told ABC News that the extra court drama will reverberate long in the court of public opinion after the judge makes his decision and will impact how the prosecution and defense present their cases.

«I don’t think there is any scenario where this is a bad situation for the prosecutor. At the minimum, it will distract from the core information of the case and delay the trial,» Scott Cummings, the Robert Henigson Professor of Legal Ethics at the UCLA School of Law, told ABC News.

Cummings said the biggest problem with the ethics violation allegations is that it's adding another distraction to the high-profile case.

Even if the judge dismisses Trump co-defendant Michael Roman's motion to remove Willis from the case, Cummings predicted the former president and co-defendants' attorneys will constantly bring up her relationship with Wade to sow distrust.

«In the near term, when it comes to optics and public perception, it does unfortunately interfere with the perception of integrity. I think it's unfortunate because there is no underlying basis for the questioning of whether or not the prosecution was legitimate,» Cummings said.

John Acevedo, a visiting associate professor at Emory School of Law, told ABC News