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
CA5 Finds Petitioner Who Had Been Convicted in Texas of Injuring a Child by Omission Was Removable
The court upheld the BIA’s conclusion that the petitioner was removable under INA §237(a)(2)(E)(i) for having been convicted of a crime of child abuse and under INA §237(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) for having been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). (Ponce v. Garland, 6/9/23)
DHS PowerPoint on Its Efforts to Support Labor Agencies Through Worker Protection
DHS provided a PowerPoint that outlined its efforts to support labor agencies including a description of the roles and responsibilities, the centralized process for workers to request deferred action, and contact information.
CA9 Holds That IJ’s Rejection of Opportunity to File Relief Application Deprived Petitioner of Due Process
The court held that the IJ’s rejection of the petitioner’s attorney’s request for the opportunity to file a relief application on the date of the petitioner’s individual merits hearing deprived the petitioner of a full and fair opportunity to be heard. (Arizmendi-Medina v. Garland, 6/7/23)
CA9 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Guatemalan Woman Who Feared Future Persecution on Account of Her Political Opinion
Where the Guatemalan petitioner claimed she feared persecution on account of her political opinion, the court held that she had failed to show a nexus between her past or feared future harms and her membership in three alleged particular social groups. (Rodriguez-Zuniga v. Garland, 6/7/23)
CA9 Says BIA Erred in Finding Petitioner’s Convictions for Attempting to Elude a Police Vehicle in Washington Were CIMTs
The court held that, in finding petitioner’s convictions for attempting to elude a police vehicle were crimes involving moral turpitude (CIMTs), the BIA failed to address substantive changes the Washington Legislature had made to the statute of conviction. (Zhovtonizhko v. Garland, 6/7/23)
Advocacy Groups File CRCL Complaint Regarding DHS’s Reliance on Unreliable Information from Human Rights-Abusing Governments
A group of advocacy organizations filed a complaint with DHS’s Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) requesting an investigation into DHS’s alleged reliance on unreliable information from human rights-abusing governments in enforcement practices and immigration proceedings.
EOIR Issues Memo on Language Access in Immigration Court
EOIR issued a memo that discusses interpretation and language access in immigration court. This memo is effective 6/6/23. It supersedes and rescinds Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum 04-08, Contract Interpreter Services.
CA9 Holds That INA §236(c) Authorizes Immigration Detention During Judicial Review Phase of Removal Proceedings
The court held that a noncitizen initially subject to mandatory detention under INA §236(c) is not entitled to a bond hearing under INA §236(a) while awaiting a decision on a petition for review. (Hernandez Avilez v. Garland, 9/8/22, amended 6/6/23)
CA8 Upholds Asylum Denial as to Married Homosexual Petitioner from Mexico
The court held that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s finding that the petitioner had failed to demonstrate a well-founded fear of persecution based on his membership in the particular social group (PSG) of “married homosexual males in Mexico.” (Pacheco-Moran v. Garland, 6/5/23)
CA5 Finds Petitioner Forfeited Right to Notice by Failing to Correct Erroneous Mailing Address
Denying the petition for review, the court concluded that the petitioner had forfeited his right to notice by failing to correct the erroneous mailing address listed in his “Notification Requirement for Change of Address” and Form I-830. (Nivelo Cardenas v. Garland, 6/2/23)
CA7 Finds Female Business Owner in El Salvador Failed to Establish Well-Founded Fear of Future Persecution
The court held that the documentary evidence did not compel a finding that the petitioner had established a well-founded fear of future persecution, but instead demonstrated general conditions of crime and violence in El Salvador. (Granados Arias v. Garland, 5/31/23)
CA4 Finds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Petition Filed Eight Months After BIA’s Final Order of Removal
The court held that the BIA’s December 2020 order denying cancellation of removal was a “final order of removal” that started INA §242(b)(1)’s 30-day clock, and thus that the petitioner’s filing for review in August 2021 was outside the mandatory filing period. (Salgado v. Garland, 5/31/23)
ICE Begins Testing Wrist-Worn GPS Monitoring Technology
ICE announced that it began limited testing in Denver of a wrist-worn GPS monitoring device as part of its ongoing efforts to provide additional technology in the Alternatives to Detention suite of options.
Practice Alert: Regulatory Changes Due to the Asylum Transit Ban
AILA provides a practice alert on regulatory changes made by the newly published regulation Circumventing Lawful Pathways. Interior attorneys should be aware that these changes are not limited to the border and do impact asylum eligibility for non-expedited removal cases.
USCIS 60-Day Notice and Request for Comment on Proposed Revisions to Form I-589
USCIS 60-day notice and request for comment on proposed revisions to Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal. Comments are due 7/24/23. (88 FR 33161, 5/23/23)
CA9 Remands Asylum Claim Where BIA Applied Wrong Standard in Reviewing IJ’s Nexus Determination
The court remanded petitioner’s asylum claims, finding that the BIA applied the wrong standard in reviewing the IJ’s determination that the evidence failed to establish the requisite nexus between a protected ground and past or future harm. (Umana-Escobar v. Garland, 3/17/23, amended 5/23/23)
BIA Holds That Conviction in New York for Displaying Perceived Firearm During Burglary Is an Aggravated Felony Crime of Violence
The BIA held that a conviction for displaying what appears to be a pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, machine gun, or other firearm while committing burglary under New York law constitutes an aggravated felony crime of violence. Matter of Pougatchev, 28 I&N Dec. 719 (BIA 2023)
CA9 Reverses District Court’s Determination That INA §276 Violates Equal Protection Clause
The court held that plaintiff did not carry his burden of proving that INA §276 was enacted with the intent to be discriminatory towards Mexicans and other Central and South Americans, and thus that the district court erred in holding otherwise. (United States v. Carrillo-Lopez, 5/22/23)
Practicing Law in TV Land
AILA member Tony Drago describes the impact of using video rather than in-person hearings, writing that while “In 2022, EOIR issued guidance to immigration judges on the use of virtual hearings, but far more clear guidance and standards are needed to ensure fairness.“
Practice Alert: Operational and Policy Updates from ICE Post-Title 42
In the lead-up to the end of Title 42 and in the days thereafter, ICE issued several operational and policy updates. AILA provides a practice alert with a summary of information gleaned from ICE briefings and stakeholder engagements.
EOIR Announces 19 New Immigration Judges
EOIR announced the appointment of 19 immigration judges, including one assistant chief immigration judge, to immigration courts in Arizona, California, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, and Texas.
ICE Releases Post Pandemic Emergency COVID-19 Guidelines and Protocols
ICE released new guidelines following the end of the COVID-19 public health emergency. The guidelines eliminate the requirement for COVID-19 tests and quarantine for all detainees, allowing ICE to increase the number of accessible beds and expedite the processing of detained noncitizens.
Federal Court Issues Temporary Restraining Order on CBP’s Parole with Conditions Memo
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida Pensacola Division issued a temporary restraining order preventing the implementation of CBP’s Parole with Conditions memo until May 25, 2023.
Supreme Court Says Noncitizens Need Not Request Reconsideration of Unfavorable BIA Decision to Satisfy Exhaustion Requirement
The Supreme Court held that INA §242(d)(1) is not jurisdictional, and that a noncitizen need not request discretionary forms of administrative review, like reconsideration of an unfavorable BIA determination, to satisfy §242(d)(1)’s exhaustion requirement. (Santos-Zacaria v. Garland, 5/11/23)
CA1 Vacates BIA’s Denial of Asylum to Guatemalan Petitioner Who Supported the LIDER Political Party
The court found that the BIA’s conclusion—namely, that since the petitioner had left Guatemala in January 2015, fundamental changes to the conditions there had negated the objective basis for his particular fear—was not supported by substantial evidence. (Mendez Esteban v. Garland, 5/11/23)