Hawaii asks full court to hear Trump travel ban appeal

HONOLULU – Attorneys representing Hawaii in the state’s challenge to President Donald Trump’s revised travel ban are asking that the full panel of a federal appeals court hear the case.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear the case May 15.

Hawaii’s request filed Tuesday notes that the full 15-judge panel of another federal appeals court will hear a similar case challenging the travel ban.

Appeals are typically heard first by a three-judge panel before they are possibly examined by the full panel.

Hawaii argues the case involves a “question of exceptional importance.”

The Trump administration is appealing a Hawaii federal judge’s ruling blocking the government from suspending new visas for people from six Muslim-majority countries and halting the U.S. refugee program.