⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

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United States v. Menendez, Hana & Daibes — 2d Cir. (Sep 24, 2026)

No. 25-296 Argued September 24, 2026 Published September 26, 2026

A bribery case built partly on cash and gold found in a former senator's home reaches an appeals court. After a nine-week trial in New York, a jury convicted former senator Robert Menendez and businessmen Wael Hana and Fred Daibes. Prosecutors said the payments sought help for Hana's Egypt-granted halal certification monopoly and for Daibes, who faced a federal prosecution. All three appeal together. Their lawyers say the jury heard, or could access, protected Senate activity under the Constitution's Speech or Debate Clause; the government says the trial was lawful. They also dispute whether Menendez's calls to other officials qualify as official acts under bribery law, and whether New York was the proper district for certain charges.

United States v. Menendez, Hana & Daibes (No. 25-296) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, argued September 24, 2026.

Sources
Argument audio — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (public domain, 17 U.S.C. § 105):https://ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/audio/25-296,%2025-333,%2025-302.mp3
Argument listing and date — Second Circuit:https://ww3.ca2.uscourts.gov/oral_arguments.html
Case background and convictions — U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York:https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/former-us-senator-robert-menendez-sentenced-11-years-prison-bribery-foreign-agent-and
Order on jury-laptop exhibits — U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York:https://www.nysd.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/2025-01/23cr490%20menendez%20et%20al%20jan%2022%202025%20TS.pdf
Appellate docket — Wael Hana:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-296
Appellate docket — Robert Menendez:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-333
Appellate docket — Fred Daibes:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca2/25-302
U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 6:https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/article-1/
Federal bribery statute, 18 U.S.C. § 201:https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=%28title%3A18+section%3A201+edition%3Aprelim%29
Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 18 — trial venue:https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/restyled_federal_rules_of_criminal_procedure.pdf
Noel Francisco — Jones Day:https://www.jonesday.com/en/lawyers/f/noel-francisco
Paul Clement — Clement & Murphy:https://www.clementmurphy.com/who-we-are/paul-clement/
Christopher Michel — Kirkland & Ellis:https://www.kirkland.com/lawyers/m/michel-christopher

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