AILA’s Advocacy Action Center allows you to advocate for legislative and policy reforms consistent with AILA’s principles and priorities.
Get InvolvedThe brand-new 18th edition of Kurzban's Immigration Law Sourcebook is now shipping.
Order NowLearn how to tackle challenges like finding and retaining affordable staff, working better in a hybrid or remote environment, when and how to raise fees, and much more.
Register NowAILALink puts an entire immigration law library at your fingertips! Search the AILALink database for all your practice needs—statutes, regs, case law, agency guidance, publications, and more.
AILA Doc. No. 18121940 | Dated December 20, 2018
CONTACTS: | |
---|---|
George Tzamaras 202-507-7649 gtzamaras@aila.org |
Belle Woods 202-507-7675 bwoods@aila.org |
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, federal judge Emmet Sullivan struck down key portions of then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions decision in Matter of A-B-, which restricted the ability of survivors fleeing domestic and gang violence to access a fair day in immigration court. Judge Sullivan ruled that the decision violated both the Administrative Procedure Act and the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Anastasia Tonello, AILA President, praised the court's decision, saying, "Again, the independent federal courts serve as a bulwark against the Trump administration's unlawful restrictions on access to asylum and disregard for the rule of law. Judge Sullivan, appointed by President George H.W. Bush, hit the nail on the head when he ruled the policies unlawful, stating, '… it is the will of Congress—not the whims of the Executive—that determines the standard for expedited removal.' The Attorney General does not have the authority to rewrite asylum law for the administration. This decision further demonstrates why due process and justice demand a fully independent immigration court and immigration judges free from undue political influence of the executive branch."
AILA Executive Director Benjamin Johnson added, "While the federal government will surely appeal this ruling, we thank Judge Sullivan for recognizing the unlawfulness of the administration's effort to curtail access to asylum by some of the most vulnerable populations in the world. Since the issuance of Matter of A-B-, the government has wrongfully denied too many credible fear claims made by survivors of domestic abuse and other horrific persecution. Though substantial due process barriers persist for these survivors even after today's ruling, we take heart in knowing that in this case, the rule of law was restored."
Cite as AILA Doc. No. 18121940.
American Immigration Lawyers Association
1331 G Street NW, Suite 300
Washington, DC 20005
Copyright © 1993-
American Immigration Lawyers Association.
AILA.org should not be relied upon as the exclusive source for your legal research. Nothing on AILA.org constitutes legal advice, and information on AILA.org is not a substitute for independent legal advice based on a thorough review and analysis of the facts of each individual case, and independent research based on statutory and regulatory authorities, case law, policy guidance, and for procedural issues, federal government websites.