Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0
The U.S. immigration court system plays a critical role in upholding due process and ensuring fair hearings for individuals facing deportation. However, since January 20, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has implemented significant changes that challenge the structural integrity of these courts. This page aims to provide up-to-date information on the policy and legal shifts affecting the U.S. immigration court system.
Latest Updates
Updates from EOIR
Browse the Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0 collection
Think Immigration: A New Resource for Effective Immigration Court Advocacy
In this blog post, authors Michelle Méndez and Victoria Neilson discuss AILA’s newest book on trial skills and how it can help lawyers prepare and succeed in immigration court proceedings.
AILA's ICE Liaison Committee Meets with ICE
AILA’s ICE Liaison Committee will meet with ICE on November 21, 2024, to discuss topics related to NTA guidance, the CARECEN settlement, admin closure, transfer of detained clients, confiscation and return of original documents, and more. Read the full agenda and key takeaways.
AILA Submits Amicus Urging En Banc Rehearing on Issue of the Phrase "Single Scheme"
AILA submitted an amicus to the Ninth Circuit urging rehearing en banc on the issue of the phrase "single scheme" and addressing the appropriate standard for a three-judge panel to apply when deciding whether it is bound by circuit precedent that relied on Chevron after Loper Bright.
EOIR 60-Day Notice and Comment Request on Form EOIR-40
EOIR 60-day notice and comment request on Form EOIR-40, Application for Suspension of Deportation. Comments are due 1/21/25. (89 FR 91786, 11/20/24)
BIA Holds That Matter of Fernandes Applies Retroactively
The BIA held that Matter of Fernandes’s holding that an objection to a noncompliant Notice to Appear (NTA) will generally be considered timely if raised prior to close of pleadings is not a change in law. Matter of Larios-Gutierrez de Pablo and Pablo-Larios, 28 I&N Dec. 868 (BIA 2024)
Think Immigration: Children Should Not Face Immigration Court Alone
AILA Law Student Member Magdalena López Murphy explains the high stakes for children facing removal or deportation proceedings and the bipartisan effort to establish a children’s court within EOIR to ensure children have fair access to protections and obtain legal representation.
DHS Conducts Removal Flight to the People’s Republic of China
On 11/16/24, DHS, through ICE, conducted a charter removal flight to China, returning Chinese nationals without legal status in the U.S. This action underscores ongoing international cooperation to enforce immigration laws, curb smuggling, and reduce irregular migration.
District Court Approves Settlement in Case Alleging Government’s Family Separation Policy Caused Minors Severe Emotional Distress
A federal district court in California approved the settlement of two minor plaintiffs’ claims, allocating each $220,000 and noting the amounts appeared to be the largest achieved yet by plaintiffs in cases relating to the family separation policy. (P.G., et al. v. United States, 11/18/24)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Asylum as to Salvadoran Petitioner Who Faced Death Threats from the 18-Gang
The court held that substantial evidence supported the agency’s determination that petitioner, who had faced death threats from members of the 18-gang in El Salvador, lacked a well-founded fear of future persecution, and thus upheld the denial of asylum. (Cortez-Mejia v. Garland, 11/15/24)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Asylum as to Petitioner Who Suffered Domestic Abuse in Ecuador
The court held that substantial evidence supported the agency’s determination that petitioner, who suffered domestic abuse in Ecuador, had failed to show past persecution or a well-founded fear of future persecution if she were to return to Ecuador. (Medina-Suguilanda v. Garland, 11/14/24)
CA1 Upholds Asylum Denial as to Petitioner Who Received Multiple Extortionate Death Threats in El Salvador
The court upheld the BIA’s and IJ’s denial of asylum as to petitioner, who had been assaulted by armed assailants in El Salvador and received death threats, finding that he did not meet his burden to demonstrate harm rising to the level of persecution. (Urias-Orellana v. Garland, 11/14/24)
CA9 Holds That BIA Erred in Finding No Nexus Between Salvadoran Petitioner’s Persecution and His Political Opinion
The court held that BIA erred by concluding the petitioner failed to establish a nexus between the persecution he suffered and his political opinion, by mischaracterizing his proposed social group, and by improperly ignoring evidence. (Aleman-Belloso v. Garland, 11/13/24, amended 2/18/25)
CA3 Finds Substantial Evidence Supported Denial of Asylum as to Guatemalan Petitioner Who Was Abused by Violent Ex-Partner
The court rejected the petitioner’s particular social groups (PSGs) consisting of “Guatemalan small business owners, victims of extortion by gang members” and “Guatemalan women viewed as property and unable to escape their violent ex-partners.” (Manuel-Soto v. Att’y Gen., 11/12/24)
Practice Alert: G-56 ERO Call-in Letters and Form I-340 Notice to Obligor for Administratively Closed Removal Cases
AILA members have reported that ICE is issuing G-56 ERO call-in letters and Form I-340 Notice to Obligor to individuals with removal cases that are currently administratively closed. Please share your examples.
Think Immigration: What’s Changed in Immigration Law over the Last Two Years? What Hasn’t!
In this blog post, AILA member Elizabeth Montano details some of the many changes to immigration law and policy over the last two years as she explains why she turns to Kurzban’s Immigration Law Sourcebook for the comprehensive resource she needs to serve her clients.
Time: What Donald Trump’s Win Means For Immigration
Time provides a summary of President-elect Donald Trump's proposed agenda as it relates to American immigration policy.
CA1 Finds BIA and IJ Erred in Finding That Petitioner Failed to Demonstrate a Sufficient Likelihood of Torture in Jamaica
The court concluded that the agency’s likelihood-of-future-torture finding, which formed the basis of its determination that the petitioner was ineligible for Convention Against Torture (CAT) deferral, rested on an erroneously narrow legal definition of torture. (Morgan v. Garland, 11/5/24)
CA2 Holds That IJ Improperly Applied Framework for Protecting an Incompetent Concitizen’s Rights and Privileges
The court found that the BIA erred in affirming the IJ’s finding that the IJ herself had implemented adequate safeguards to address the petitioner’s incompetency and protect his rights and privileges, and thus granted the petition for review and remanded. (Reid v. Garland, 11/5/24)
Think Immigration: Getting Back to Basics - How to Improve the Entire Immigration System
AILA Law Journal Editor-in-Chief Cyrus Mehta previews the fall edition writing, “Our immigration laws will not get better unless we continue to advocate and share our expertise about how our existing system’s weaknesses harm America.”
Practice Alert: Campos-Chaves and its Implications
AILA provides a practice alert on the implications of the Supreme Court decision in Campos-Chaves v. Garland.
BIA Holds That Respondent’s Enhanced Conviction When Considered as Combined Crime Qualified as CIMT
The BIA held that respondent’s compound conviction for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated in California, with a sentencing enhancement for fleeing the scene of an accident, was categorically for a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). Matter of Khan, 28 I&N Dec. 850 (BIA 2024)
CA5 Upholds No-Hardship Finding for Cancellation Purposes Where IJ Properly Considered Relevant Hardships in the Aggregate
The court upheld the BIA’s determination that the IJ did not err in denying cancellation of removal based on the petitioner’s failure to establish that his removal would result in exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to his U.S.-citizen daughter. (Sustaita-Cordova v. Garland, 10/31/24)
CA6 Finds IJ Did Not Violate Any Obligation to Inform Petitioner of Her Potential Eligibility for a Fraud Waiver
The court held that petitioner’s failure to attend an interview, resulting in termination of her conditional permanent residence, was not sufficiently related to her fraudulent representations so as to render her “apparently eligible” for a fraud waiver. (Tukur Seldon v. Garland, 10/31/24)
CA11 Upholds Denial of Cancellation Where Petitioner’s Daughter Had Aged Out by the Time His Application Was Adjudicated
The court upheld BIA’s reaffirmance of its rule that a child who was under 21 years old when their parent applied for cancellation of removal, but has aged out by the time the application is adjudicated, does not qualify as a child under the statute. (Diaz-Arellano v. Att’y Gen., 10/29/24)
District Court Preliminarily Approves Settlement to Resolve Lawsuit Challenging ICE’s Categorical Denial of Parole to Asylum Seekers
The district court preliminarily approved a settlement agreement between ICE and asylum seekers in a case challenging ICE’s alleged practice of categorically denying parole to asylum seekers in violation of DHS’s 2009 Parole Directive. (Heredia Mons, et al. v. McAleenan, et al., 10/24/24)