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
Immigration Detention Ombudsman Provides First Quarterly Newsletter
The Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman provided its first quarterly newsletter, which introduces the function of the office, provides information on case management, links to the inspection of the Limestone County Detention Center, and more.
CA7 Finds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Reweigh Factors IJ Considered in Making Particularly Serious Crime Determination
The court dismissed petitioner’s applications for adjustment of status and withholding of removal, finding that it was beyond its jurisdiction to reweigh the factors the IJ considered in determining that petitioner’s conviction was a particularly serious crime. (Kithongo v. Garland, 5/9/22)
CA2 Says Petitioner’s New York Conviction for Attempted Second-Degree Money Laundering Was Not a CIMT
The court denied the Attorney General’s petition for panel rehearing and issued an amended opinion holding that the petitioner’s conviction for attempted second-degree money laundering in New York was not a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). (Jang v. Garland, 5/9/22, amended 7/29/22)
AILA Submits Statement for Markup of Real Courts, Rule of Law Act of 2022
AILA submitted a statement to the House Judiciary Committee for the markup of the Real Courts, Rule of Law Act of 2022 (H.R.6577). AILA urges Congress to pass this legislation, which would create an independent immigration court system under Article I.
Senators Request Funding for Legal Services for People in Immigration Court Proceedings
Nineteen senators joined Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) in sending a letter to Senate appropriators requesting that the FY2023 DOJ appropriations bill include no less than $400 million in funding for legal representation for indigent adults facing immigration court proceedings.
BIA Dismisses Respondent’s Appeal after Finding Pennsylvania Statute Punishing Possession with Intent to Deliver a Controlled Substance Is Divisible w
BIA found any fact that establishes or increases permissible range of punishment for a criminal offense is “element” for purposes of categorical approach and Pennsylvania state law is divisible with respect to substance possessed. Matter of German Santos, 28 I&N Dec. 552 (BIA 2022)
CA2 Holds That Immigration Court’s Removal Determination under INA §237(a)(2)(E)(ii) Is a Circumstance-Specific Inquiry
The court held that an immigration court’s removal determination under INA §237(a)(2)(E)(ii) is a circumstance-specific assessment of the particular protection order to which the noncitizen was subject and a court’s finding that the noncitizen violated that order. (Alvarez v. Garland, 5/5/22)
CA1 Finds BIA Failed to Consider Petitioner’s Evidence That He Would Be Tortured by Private Militias and Armed Criminals in Somalia
The court vacated the BIA’s affirmance of the IJ’s denial of deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture (CAT), holding that BIA erred by not addressing petitioner’s argument that he would face torture from private militias and armed criminals in Somalia. (Ali v. Garland, 5/5/22)
EOIR Director Provides Guidance on Friend of the Court Model in Removal Proceedings
EOIR Director Neal issued a memorandum (DM 22-06), effective May 5, 2022, that provides updated guidance on utilizing the Friend of the Court model in removal proceedings before the immigration courts. The memo also rescinds and cancels Policy Memorandum 20-05.
Featured Issue: Use of Video Teleconferences During Immigration Hearings
Find resources related to the use of video teleconferencing (VTC) during immigration hearings. AILA believes that the use of this technology undermines the quality of communications during immigration hearings and threatens due process. Learn more now.
CA9 Finds BIA Erred in Deeming Homosexual Nigerian Petitioner’s Asylum Application Frivolous
The court held that the BIA erred in affirming the IJ’s frivolous asylum application determination and denial of Convention Against Torture (CAT) relief to the petitioner, who asserted a fear of persecution or torture in Nigeria based on his status as a gay man. (Udo v. Garland, 5/4/22)
Policy Brief: Use of Virtual Hearings in Removal Proceedings
AILA and the American Immigration Council make detailed recommendations on the use of virtual technology in immigration hearings, describing the challenges of video teleconferencing and recommending agency standards and guidance.
Knowing the History of “The Huddled Masses”
In this blog post, AILA member and Law Journal author John Medeiros introduces his piece featured in the recent special edition of the AILA Law Journal celebrating AILA's 75 years; his piece “Huddled Masses“ chronicles the history of U.S. immigration and the development of U.S. immigration la
Practice Alert: Escalating Problems with Virtual Hearings and Contacting the Court
The AILA EOIR/ICE Joint Liaison Committee provides a practice alert on how to escalate certain problems with WebEx virtual hearings and contacting the immigration court and staff. Includes contact information for key EOIR personnel and a sample email template.
House Members Urge Funding for Legal Representation to Indigent Adults in Removal Proceedings
Forty-seven members of the House of Representatives, led by Congresswoman Norma Torres (D-CA), sent a letter calling for funding for the Department of Justice to expand federally funded legal representation for indigent adults facing immigration court removal proceedings.
CA8 Remands Where BIA Failed to Address IJ’s Findings Regarding Petitioner’s Likely Treatment in an IDP Camp in Somalia
The court held that the BIA erred by resolving DHS’s appeal without addressing the IJ’s findings regarding the likely treatment of the petitioner, a member of a minority clan in Somalia who suffered from mental illness, in an internally displaced person (IDP) camp. (Salat v. Garland, 4/28/22)
Congressional Letter on Inclusion of Individualized Custody Determinations Language in the FY2023 Bill
Members of Congress sent a letter to the House Subcommittee on Homeland Security Appropriations urging inclusion of language in the FY2023 appropriations bill requiring individualized custody determinations for all people in the custody of ICE within 20 days of custody.
Representatives Send “Dear Colleague” Letter to Appropriators on ICE Custody Determinations and DHS FY2023 Appropriations Bill
Members of Congress sent a letter to House appropriators urging them to include language similar to section 219 of the FY2022 Full Committee Draft Bill, requiring individualized custody determinations for everyone in ICE custody within 20 days of coming into custody, notwithstanding INA §236(c).
CA2 Finds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Petitioner’s Challenge to IJ’s Adverse Withholding Determination
The court dismissed the petition for review for lack of jurisdiction, holding that the IJ’s adverse withholding determination did not qualify as an order of removal, and thus did not fall within INA §242’s jurisdictional grant. (Bhaktibhai-Patel v. Garland, 4/27/22)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief on Motion to Reopen and the Vacatur of a Criminal Conviction
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief requesting the BIA to pursue uniform rules that comprise a framework of fundamental fairness when adjudicating motions to reopen based on a vacated conviction that renders the respondent no longer deportable or eligible for discretionary relief.
Resources Related to the Orantes Injunction
The Orantes injunction requires DHS uphold certain rights of Salvadorans in immigration detention. In Feb. 2022, plaintiffs filed a motion to reopen discovery, arguing MPP raises questions about government's compliance with injunction. The court granted majority of the motion on 4/27/22.
CA9 Says BIA Did Not Abuse Its Discretion in Finding Petitioner Did Not Warrant Equitable Tolling of Motion to Reopen
Where petitioner filed a motion to reopen 16 years after the statutory deadline, the court held that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in finding he did not warrant equitable tolling of the time limit based on alleged ineffective assistance of counsel. (Hernandez-Ortiz v. Garland, 4/26/22)
CA9 Concludes It Can Deny Petition Based on BIA’s Lack of Jurisdiction Even Where BIA Did Not Rule on That Basis
Upholding the BIA’s denial of petitioner’s motion to reopen, the court concluded that it could properly deny a petition for review based on the BIA’s lack of jurisdiction under INA §241(a)(5), even where the BIA did not rely on that jurisdictional bar. (Gutierrez-Zavala v. Garland, 4/26/22)
Chief Immigration Judge Provides Guidance on Deferring Adjudication of Certain Cases
Guidance from Chief Immigration Judge Tracy Short alerting courts that he will be moving certain cases that “are not ripe for adjudication” off court dockets. Special thanks to Evan Benz, who submitted a FOIA to obtain this guidance.
ICE 30-Day Notice and Request for Comments on Proposed Revisions to Form I-312/Form I-312A
ICE 30-day notice and request for comments on proposed revisions to Form I-312, Designation of Attorney in Fact, and Form I-312A, Revocation of Attorney in Fact. Comments are due 5/25/22. (87 FR 24326, 4/25/22)