Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE
This resource page combines resources for attorneys representing clients before ICE. For information about why AILA is calling for the reduction and phasing out of immigration detention, please see our Featured Issue Page: Immigration Detention and Alternatives to Detention.
Quick Links
- Seeking Stays of Removal
- AILA Practice Pointers and Alerts (continually updated)
- Practice Advisory: Representing Detained Clients in the Virtual Landscape
- Practice Pointer: How to Locate Clients Apprehended by ICE
- Practice Pointer: Preparing for an Order of Supervision Appointment with ICE-ERO
- AILA ICE Liaison Agenda and Meeting Minutes
Communicating with OPLA, ERO, and CROs
The Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) includes 1300 attorneys who represent the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in immigration removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). OPLA litigates all removal cases as well as provides legal counsel to ICE personnel. At present, there are 25 field locations throughout the United States.
Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) manages all aspects of immigration enforcement from arrest, detention, and removal. ERO has 24 field office locations. ERO also manages an “alternative to detention” program that relies almost exclusively on the “Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP)” to monitor individuals in removal proceedings.
Since 2016, ICE has had an Office of Partnership and Engagement (formerly Office of Community Engagement) to be a link between the agency and stakeholders. As part of this office, Community Relations Officers (CROS) are assigned to every field office to work with local stakeholders such as attorneys and nonprofit organizations.
*Headquarters does not provide direct contact numbers or emails for individual employees.* (AILA Liaison Meeting with ICE on April 26, 2023)(AILA Doc. No. 23033004). However, attorneys can contact Chapter Local ICE Liaisons as they may have this information provided to them via local liaison engagement.
- DHS/ICE/OPLA Chief Counsel Contact Information [last updated in 2024, this list no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- Contact Information for Local OPLA Offices [last updated in 2024, this information no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- ERO Field Offices Contact Information*
- OPE Community Relations Officers
- ICE Check-In Scheduling Website
- ICE Online Change of Address Website
Latest on Enforcement Priorities & Prosecutorial Discretion
Executive Order 14159 (90 FR 8443, 1/29/25) directs DHS to set priorities that protect the public safety and national security interests of the American people, including by ensuring the successful enforcement of final orders of removal, enforcement of the INA and other Federal laws related to the illegal entry and unlawful presence of [noncitizens] in the United States and the enforcement of the purposes of this order. Given the January 25, 2025, confirmation of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, a memorandum detailing enforcement priorities may be issued in the coming weeks.
An unpublished ICE memo from acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello entitled “Interim Guidance: Civil Immigration Enforcement Actions in or near Courthouses” makes reference to targeted noncitizens and includes:
- National security or public safety threats;
- Those with criminal convictions;
- Gang members;
- Those who have been ordered removed from the United States but have failed to depart; and/or
- Those who have re-entered the country illegally after being removed.
Procedures and email inboxes created under the Biden Administration to request Prosecutorial Discretion no longer appear on the ICE website. AILA members are encouraged to review current DOJ regulations entitled “Efficient Case and Docket Management in Immigration Proceedings” for alternative basis for seeking termination or administrative closure.
Access to Counsel
- ERO eFile:
- An online system developed to electronically file G-28s with ERO. Attorneys and accredited representatives may register for ERO eFile accounts and may also sponsor law students and law graduates who work under their supervision. See AILA’s practice alert (AILA Doc. No. 24051506) for more information.
- ICE Attorney Information and Resources Page
- AILA Practice Alert: Updates to the ICE Attorney Information and Resource Page
Filing Administrative Complaints on Behalf of Detained and Formerly Detained Clients
- Online Intake Form for the Detention Ombudsman (myOIDO)
- Available for complaints for issues in ICE and CBP Custody nationwide, including to submit complaints about access to counsel problems on behalf of currently or previously detained clients.
- Online Complaint Form for DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL)
- Oversight of Immigration Detention: An Overview - May 16, 2022
(provides a list of agencies with which attorneys may file administrative complaints of detention center violations) - Immigration Judge Complaint Toolkit – August 31, 2022
- Practice Alert: Template for CRCL Complaint Regarding Failures to Provide Language Access – July 16, 2021
Selected ICE Policies and Current Status
For comprehensive comparison of current and prior ICE policies, please review the “Immigration Policy Tracker (IPTP).” The IPTP is a project of Professor Lucas Guttentag working with teams of Stanford and Yale law students and leading national immigration experts.
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Browse the Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE collection
CA9 Says BIA Properly Found That Petitioner’s California Drug Conviction Was a Particularly Serious Crime
The court found that the BIA properly applied Matter of Y–L– to conclude that the petitioner’s conviction in California for possession of cocaine for sale was a particularly serious crime that barred withholding of removal. (Park v. Garland, 6/29/23)
Resources on Florida Anti-immigrant Bills
This page includes resources related to recently passed Florida legislation targeting immigrants.
Litigation Timeline for Texas and Louisiana Challenge to President Biden’s 2021 Prosecutorial Discretion Memo
In June 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court found that Texas and Louisiana lacked Article III standing to challenge the 2021 Guidelines for the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Law memo.
State Courts Affect Applications for Special Immigrant Juvenile Status
AILA Law Journal author Madelyn Cox-Guerra shares a bit about her recent article which focused on state court treatment of families as it relates to children seeking Special Immigrant Juvenile Status; she hopes the article will spur more research and advocacy.
CA8 Says Petitioner’s Due Process Rights Were Not Violated When IJ Continued Her Case Instead of Terminating It
The court found that the petitioner was not prejudiced by the continuation of her case rather than its termination when the IJ determined that the petitioner’s humanitarian parole would not expire for another two months. (Brizuela v. Garland, 6/27/23)
CA9 Says Petitioner’s Misrepresentations About His Citizenship to Police Officers Did Not Render Him Inadmissible
The court held that the petitioner’s misrepresentations about his citizenship to police officers in order to avoid removal proceedings did not render him inadmissible, and thus he was not ineligible for adjustment of status under INA §212(a)(6)(C)(ii)(I). (Ramírez Muñoz v. Garland, 6/26/23)
CA4 Vacates Denial of Asylum to Salvadoran Petitioner Where BIA Erred in Nexus Analysis
The court held that, in focusing on the reason why the MS-13 gang targeted the petitioner’s family members rather than on why the gang would target him if he returned to El Salvador, the IJ and BIA applied the incorrect legal standard for the nexus analysis. (A.G. v. Garland, 6/23/23)
ICE Open Forum at 2023 AILA Annual Conference
AILA shares a recording of the ICE Open Forum at the 2023 AILA Annual Conference and Webcast on Immigration Law in Orlando, FL.
Supreme Court Upholds President Biden’s Immigration Enforcement Plan
The U.S. Supreme Court found that Texas and Louisiana lacked Article III standing to challenge the 2021 Guidelines for the Enforcement of Civil Immigration Law memo. (United States v. Texas, 6/23/23)
SCOTUS: Biden Administration ICE Guidelines Withstand States’ Challenge
AILA welcomed the SCOTUS decision in U.S. v. Texas which upholds the prerogative of the executive branch to set agency guidelines; AILA President Farshad Owji called the decision a clear message, adding “The states that attempted to derail this commonsense approach were in the wrong.”
Advocacy Groups File Lawsuit Challenging Asylum Bar’s Changes to Expedited Removal Procedures
Several advocacy groups filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on behalf of asylum seekers challenging the government’s asylum eligibility bar, “Circumvention of Lawful Pathways.” (M.A., et al. v. Jaddou, et al., 6/23/23)
EOIR Open Forum at 2023 AILA Annual Conference
AILA’s EOIR Liaison Committee provides key takeways from the EOIR Open Forum at the 2023 AILA Annual Conference.
Supreme Court Says Offense “Relating to Obstruction of Justice” Under INA §101(a)(43)(S) Does Not Require Pending Investigation
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an offense may “relat[e] to obstruction of justice” under INA §101(a)(43)(S) even if the offense does not require that an investigation or proceeding be pending. (Pugin v. Garland, 6/22/23)
CA10 Finds That IJ and BIA Did Not Err in Invoking Frivolous-Asylum Bar in Same Proceeding as Frivolousness Finding
The court rejected the petitioner’s argument that the IJ erred in making a frivolousness finding as to the petitioner’s asylum application and invoking the statutory frivolous bar outlined in INA §208(d)(6) in the same proceeding. (Farnum v. Garland, 6/21/23)
CA8 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Citizen of Burkina Faso Who Feared Harm Based on His Political Opinions
The court held that because the IJ identified specific, cogent reasons to disbelieve the testimony of the petitioner, a citizen of Burkina Faso who feared harm due to his political opinions, sufficient evidence supported the IJ’s adverse credibility determination. (Zongo v. Garland, 6/16/23)
CA7 Finds That Substantial Evidence Supported IJ’s Adverse Credibility Determination as to Chinese Petitioner
The court held that, in denying petitioner’s claim for asylum, the IJ considered her testimony and evidence, pointed to several material inconsistencies and instances of evasive or untruthful testimony, and determined that her overall testimony lacked credibility. (Cui v. Garland, 6/16/23)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Withholding of Removal to Ghanaian Petitioner Whose Family Had Been Displaced from Their Farm
The court rejected the petitioner’s argument that being removed to his native Ghana would contravene INA §241(b)(3)(A) because he would lack the freedom to return to his family’s cocoa farm due to a conflict with a local chieftain. (Odei v. Garland, 6/15/23)
CA2 Finds Immigration Court Did Not Abuse Its Discretion in Denying Jamaican Petitioner’s Motions to Terminate
Denying the petition for review, the court held that the petitioner had failed to show that he satisfied any of the three requirements for termination as required under Rajah v. Mukasey, and thus was not entitled to termination of his removal proceedings. (Medley v. Garland, 6/15/23)
CA5 Rejects Petitioner’s Argument That Two Temporary BIA Members Who Ruled in His Case Acted Ultra Vires
The court rejected the petitioner’s argument that the two temporary BIA members who ruled in his case acted ultra vires because their terms had “terminated by automatic operation of law” nearly six months before they ruled in his case. (Medina Carreon v. Garland, 6/15/23)
CA8 Says Petitioner’s Conviction in Kansas for Possession of Methamphetamine Made Him Removable Under INA §237(a)(2)(B)(i)
Denying the petition for review, the court held that the BIA correctly found that the petitioner’s conviction in Kansas for possession of methamphetamine made him removable from the United States for having committed a controlled substance offense. (Rincon Barbosa v. Garland, 6/14/23)
CA8 Finds That BIA Properly Considered Hardship to Petitioner’s Relatives as One of Her Positive Equities
The court concluded that, in denying a waiver of inadmissibility to the Sierra Leonean petitioner, the BIA properly evaluated the hardship to the petitioner’s relatives as one of her positive equities. (King v. Garland, 6/14/23)
CA5 Finds BIA Properly Relied on Form I-213 to Conclude Petitioner Had Received Notice of His Removal Hearing
The court held that the BIA did not err in relying on a reconstructed record that did not contain the petitioner’s Notice to Appear (NTA) but that did include his Form I-213, Record of Deportable/Inadmissible Alien. (Alexandre-Matias v. Garland, 6/13/23)
ICYMI: ICE Online Change of Address Tool Fully Operational
ICE announced that its online change-of-address form for noncitizens is fully operational. Noncitizens now have the option to update their information online in addition to the existing options of doing so by phone or in-person.
USCIS 30-Day Notice and Request for Comment on Proposed Revisions to Form I-881
USCIS 30-day notice and request for comment on proposed revisions to Form I-881, Application for Suspension of Deportation or Special Rule Cancellation of Removal (Pursuant to Section 203 of Pub. L. 105–100, NACARA). Comments are due 7/12/23. (88 FR 38088, 6/12/23)
Southern California Chapter: Q&A from Liaison Meeting with OPLA-LA and ERO (6/12/23)
Notes from Southern California Chapter’s liaison meeting with DHS OPLA-LA and ERO on 6/12/23.