The judge overseeing former President Donald Trump's prosecution in Washington, D.C., has set a date for the next hearing in the case. 

This, according to the Washington Times, is taking place in the so-called election interference case that Special Counsel Jack Smith has brought against Trump.

The case has been on hold for many months while the U.S. Supreme Court considered Trump's presidential immunity defense. The justices recently held that U.S. presidents do have immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts taken while in office.

Now that this has been decided, the D.C. case can finally resume. The question going forward is how much Judge Tanya Chutkan is going to try to squeeze in before election day.

The latest

Chutkan has now scheduled a hearing in the case to take place on Aug. 16, 2024, at 10 a.m. She issued this decision over the weekend.

USA Today reports:

Kick starting the legal maneuvering, Chutkan set an Aug. 16 hearing in Washington, D.C., to consider the schedule for Trump’s felony criminal case. She also ordered both Trump's lawyers and Smith's Justice Department team to propose a schedule for moving forward by Friday.

This is the first action in the case in about seven months. It is unclear whether or not Trump will attend the Aug. 16 hearing. He, according to reports, is not required to do so.

Chutkan, on Saturday, also denied a dismissal motion from Trump.

ABC News reports, "Chutkan also denied Trump's motion to dismiss the case on statutory grounds. She says they may refile the motion once issues of presidential immunity are resolved."

What now?

The Washington Times reports, "All parties involved must submit a status report by Friday."

After that, the next thing to take place will be the hearing. At this hearing, the judge and the parties will decide on how things are going to proceed.

The big question is whether Chutkan will try to start the trial before the upcoming presidential election. It is no secret that Smith has been trying to get a guilty conviction of Trump in order to help the Democrats out in the 2024 election.

Legal experts seem to be in agreement that it is very unlikely that the trial phase of the case will begin before the Nov. 5 election. But, it has not been definitively ruled out.

Trump, for his part, has not commented on this recent order from Chutkan. He, instead, has been focusing on his 2024 campaign and on his new opponent - Vice President Kamala Harris.