A law professor from New York University said Friday night that President-elect Donald Trump’s reported plan to fire the team that worked with Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith is “probably illegal” and “smacks of political retribution.”

Earlier Friday, the Washington Post reported Trump plans to fire the entire team that worked with Smith, including career attorneys who are typically protected from such acts. But on Nov. 13, The New York Times reported that Smith and other members of his team plan to step down before Trump takes office on Jan. 20.

“It’s extraordinary on so many levels,” professor Ryan Goodman told CNN, according to Mediaite. “First, these are civil servants who have legal protections. They probably include people who did not have any choice but to work with the team. … So, to fire those people categorically who have protections, which also means that it would be probably illegal firings. And a huge part of the Justice Department and [nominee for attorney general] Pam Bondi will be caught up in a huge amount of employment litigation over all of their claims were they to go down that path.

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