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
District Court Finds Matter of A-B-'s General Rule Against Domestic Violence and Gang-Related Asylum Claims to Be Unlawful
The district court found that several of the credible fear policies articulated in Matter of A-B- and a subsequent policy memo, including the general rule against domestic violence and gang-related claims, are arbitrary and capricious and contrary to law. (Grace v. Whitaker, 12/19/18)
New Mexico Delegation Demands Oversight Hearing on Death of Seven-Year old Child in CBP Custody
On 12/19/18, New Mexico Senators Tom Udall (D) and Martin Heinrich (D), and Representatives Ben Ray Lujan (D) and Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) urged Congress to hold oversight hearings on the death of seven-year-old Jakelin Caal Maquin after she and her father were held by CBP in New Mexico.
BIA Holds Washington PWID Statute Not an Aggravated Felony
Unpublished BIA decision holds that possession with intent to deliver methamphetamine under Wash. Rev. Code 69.50.401(2)(b) is not an aggravated felony under United States v. Valdivia-Flores, 876 F.3d 1201 (9th Cir. 2017). Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Flores, 12/19/18)
ACLU Files Lawsuit Regarding Expedited Removal and Matter of A-B- Asylum Policies
The district court found that several of the credible fear policies articulated in Matter of A-B- and a subsequent policy memo, including the general rule against domestic violence and gang-related claims, are arbitrary and capricious and contrary to law. (Grace v. Whitaker, 12/19/18)
BIA Holds Utah Lewdness Statute Not Sexual Abuse of a Minor or a Crime of Child Abuse
Unpublished BIA decision holds that lewdness involving a child under Utah Code Ann. 76-9-702.5 is not sexual abuse of a minor or a crime of child abuse because it applies to the mere exposure of one’s buttocks in the presence of a child. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Safanov, 12/18/18)
Parties Reach Settlement in Class Action Lawsuit Challenging ICE’s Practice of Conducting Warrantless Arrests and Vehicle Stops
The district court approved the settlement agreement reached by the parties, which among other things, provides that ICE must issue a new nationwide policy regarding warrantless arrests and vehicle stops and undergo training nationwide. (Castañon Nava, et al. v. DHS, et al., 2/8/22)
EOIR Releases Memo on Internal Reporting of Suspected Ineffective Assistance of Counsel and Professional Misconduct
EOIR released guidance establishing policies and procedures for reporting suspected incidents of ineffective assistance of counsel or other violations of the EOIR Rules of Professional Conduct for Practitioners to the Office of General Counsel Attorney Discipline Program. Guidance effective 1/1/19.
CA6 Upheld Denial, Finding BIA Adhered to Procedural Rules in Determining One- vs. Three-Member Panels
The court denied petitioner’s motion to reopen and found BIA applied the correct standards and fact finding and that the BIA adhered to the procedural rules in determining one- versus three-member panels when it assigned a single member to decide the motion. (Gafurova v. Whitaker, 12/18/18)
CA6 Holds Res Judicata Applies in Removal Proceedings and Remands for Determination of Finality
The court rejected the agency’s contrary interpretation, finding res judicata applies in removal proceedings, and remanded to the BIA to determine finality of dismissal without prejudice. (Arangure v. Whitaker, 12/18/18)
CA2 Remands to BIA to Apply Correct Standard of Review on Good Faith Marriage Question
The court found BIA erred in applying clear error, instead of de novo, standard of review to IJ’s good faith marriage waiver denial; it also held petitioner abandoned abuse of discretion claim on MTR denial because he failed to adequately argue it in brief. (Alom v. Whitaker, 12/17/18)
CA6 Finds Conviction for Rape by Digital Penetration Under Ohio Rape Statute Does Not Match Federal Definition
The court held BIA erred in conflating “rape” and “sexual abuse” definitions to conclude that generic rape crime included digital penetration; under Ohio law, digital penetration is not rape for purposes of aggravated felony-based removal. (Keeley v. Whitaker, 12/17/18)
BIA Holds Colorado Vehicular Eluding Not a CIMT
Unpublished BIA decision holds that vehicular eluding under Colo. Rev. Stat. 18-9-116.5 is not a CIMT because it does not require perpetrators to drive recklessly or create a risk of bodily injury to another person. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Erazo-Aguirre, 12/17/18)
AILA Teams Up with the ACLU and Others to Tear Down Barriers to Access to Counsel
In this blog post, AILA Executive Director Benjamin Johnson describes the lawsuit AILA joined as plaintiff in response to ICE and Geo Group creating unlawful barriers to attorney-client communications.
BIA Holds Respondent Not Inadmissible for Conviction Subject to 212(c) Waiver
Unpublished BIA decision holds that respondent is not inadmissible based on a conviction for which he was previously granted a waiver under former INA 212(c). Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Morel-Uceta, 12/14/18)
ICE Releases FY2018 ERO Administrative Arrests and ICE Removals
ICE released statistics on FY2018 ERO administrative arrests and ICE removals
CA6 Grants Review of BIA Denial of Cancellation, Holds Findings Were Not Supported by Record and BIA Failed to Apply Appropriate Standard of Review
The court determined BIA erred in finding new evidence was previously available, and BIA failed to consider hardship ground raised in the MTR, instead offering a cursory analysis that didn’t allow for meaningful review; remanded to properly apply law. (Hernandez-Perez v. Whitaker, 12/14/18)
ICE Releases FY2018 ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Report
ICE released a report that summarized U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) activities in FY2018.
CA11 Upholds BIA’s §237(a)(2)(B)(i) Removability Determination for Possession of Cocaine Based on Florida Drug Possession Statute’s Divisibility
The court denied petition for review, finding that based on state law precedent and jury instructions, the identity of a controlled substance is an element of Fla. Stat. §893.13(6)(a) and that BIA correctly found possession of cocaine a removable offense. (Guillen v. Att’y Gen., 12/13/18)
Former IJ Jeffrey Chase Explains How “Family Unit” Memo Creates More Obstacles for Families
Former Immigration Judge Jeffrey Chase discussed the EOIR memo that announced the end of a reprieve on the prioritization of “Family Unit” cases, “under conditions designed to speed them through the immigration court system, ready or not, with or without representation, due process be damned.”
AILA Files Amicus Brief on Applicability of the Reinstatement Bar on Reopening in VAWA Cases
AILA filed an amicus brief with the Ninth Circuit in Rodarte-Gonzalez v. Whitaker, arguing that individuals eligible for VAWA relief are not subject to the reinstatement bar on reopening.
Former State and Federal Judges Sent Letter to ICE Expressing Concern About Courthouse Arrests
On 12/12/18, nearly 70 former state and federal judges expressed concern about ICE’s continued reliance on immigration enforcement activities inside courthouses, stating that the public must be able to access courthouses safely and that “ICE’s courthouse arrests have made courts places to avoid.”
CA1 Upholds BIA Reversal of IJ Grant of CAT Deferral to Domestic Violence Victim
The court denied petition for review and held the BIA correctly found the petitioner was unable to prove that the Dominican government acquiesced in her domestic abuse; thus, failed to meet the CAT definition of “torture” mandated for deferral of removal. (Ruiz-Guerrero v. Whitaker, 12/12/18)
CA8 Denies Petition for Review, Finding No Due Process Violations by IJ
The court found although IJ stopped petitioner’s attorney from listing potential PSGs (potential denial of right to counsel), there was no prejudice because IJ considered three PSGs; and IJ was not biased by asking about her failure to report crimes to police. (Molina v. Whitaker, 12/12/18)
CA1 Upholds IJ/BIA Denial of Asylum Due to Lack of Nexus to a Protected Ground
The court found petitioner secretly informed Ecuadorian police about gangs suffered persecution, but failed to prove he was targeted due to political opinion or particular social group since there was no evidence that his attackers knew he was an informant. (Mendez v. Whitaker, 12/11/18)
CA2 Vacates Unlawful Reentry Sentence Imposed on Noncitizen Based on Incorrect “Drug Trafficking Offense” Finding, and Remands for Resentencing
Using the categorical approach, the court held AZ’s drug law was overbroad; thus, district court erred in finding defendant’s prior conviction a “drug trafficking offense” that subjected him to 2016 Guidelines’ higher sentencing than that of 2014 Guidelines. (U.S. v. Guerrero, 12/10/18)