After returning as President, what will happen to cases against Donald Trump? Know here

Donald Trump's return to the White House has sent shockwaves through the legal world and could change the course of several criminal and civil cases against him. Legal experts are scrambling to figure out how his electoral triumph will shake up ongoing investigations and prosecutions.

The most immediate impacts are on the federal cases brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith. Sources close to the Justice Department say discussions are already underway to end these high-profile prosecutions, which have long been barred by the Justice Department's policy against indicting a sitting president. But now Trump's campaign promise to fire Smith "within two seconds" of taking office hangs over him, even though he has no direct authority to do so.

Federal cases may come to a screeching halt, but state prosecutions are a different story. Trump's conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with hush money payments, meanwhile, is on hold in New York. A sentencing date of November 26 hangs in the balance, with Judge Juan Merchan expected to rule on a dismissal motion on November 12.

Trump's racketeering case in Georgia over alleged election interference has its own hurdles. Legal experts say this case could be frozen during Trump's presidency, following the tradition of not prosecuting a sitting commander in chief.

They go beyond the criminal. However, Trump’s pressing civil liability concerns include substantial financial penalties. Presidential status will be one of the legal levers his legal team will use in ongoing appeals and negotiations.

One thing is clear, Trump's electoral victory has fundamentally remade the political landscape and has sent the legal world into uncharted territory. The coming months will be critical to the fate of these high-stakes legal battles as the world watches.