A stay of trial proceedings pending an interlocutory appeal on apprehended bias grounds will not be granted where the trial is substantially advanced (approximately 80% complete), the prospects of success on the leave application are not strong, and the bias issue can be raised on appeal from any adverse final order. The threshold for interlocutory appellate intervention on bias grounds requires it to be clearly established that the fair-minded observer might think the trial judge might not adopt an impartial approach regardless of what transpired during the remainder of the trial.
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