A three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit suspended a lower court order for hundreds of Voice of America employees who were placed on leave to return to work.

The appeals court issued a stay on Tuesday pending the Trump administration's appeal of the lower court's ruling earlier last month, The Associated Press reported. More than 1,000 VOA employees will remain on administrative leave while the appeals court considers the case, which could take months.

On March 17, U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth, a Reagan appointee, ordered the Trump administration to restore VOA's operations after it had effectively been shut down a year ago.

The three-judge panel consists of Circuit Judges Karen LeCraft Henderson, a nominee of President George H. W. Bush; Robert Wilkins, an Obama appointee; and Gregory Katsas, a Trump appointee.