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
CA8 Finds Petitioners’ Motion for Reconsideration Automatically Terminated Voluntary Departure Granted in Previous Proceeding
The court held that BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying petitioners’ motion for reconsideration, because their filing of a motion to reconsider prior to the end of their voluntary departure period automatically terminated the grant of voluntary departure. (Bekhbat v. Garland, 7/27/23)
USCIS 30-Day Notice and Request for Comment on Proposed Revisions to Form I-212
USCIS 30-day notice and request for comment on proposed revisions to Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States after Deportation or Removal. Comments are due 8/28/23. (88 FR 48486, 7/27/23)
Practice Alert: ICE Online Change of Address Available Nationwide
AILA provides a practice alert following ICE’s announcement that its online change-of-address form for noncitizens is available nationwide. The alert details what information is needed to complete the form and the option to elect to receive a Notice to Appear by mail or in person.
Practice Alert: Changes to Requests for Reconsiderations in Expedited Removal
This practice alert covers recent changes to Requests for Reconsiderations in expedited removal which has a significant impact on the law and procedures regarding the credible fear interview process, including a seven-day deadline and change in RFR eligibility for certain noncitizens.
CA2 Finds BIA and IJ Erred in Finding Chinese Petitioner Who Practiced Falun Gong Was Not Credible
The court concluded that the IJ misidentified part of the petitioner’s testimony as inconsistent, improperly relied on trivial inconsistencies, and misconstrued as an omission a part of the petitioner’s testimony that comported with his Form I-589 asylum statement. (Chen v. Garland, 7/25/23)
CA1 Says Salvadoran Petitioners Failed to Bear Their Burden as to Two Claimed PSGs
The court held that the BIA did not err in concluding that petitioners did not meet their burden as to the two separate particular social groups (PSGs) they claimed, namely “Salvadoran business owners perceived as wealthy” and the “Sanchez-Rivas nuclear family.” (Sanchez v. Garland, 7/14/23)
CA4 Finds Petitioner Showed Nexus Between Persecution by MS-13 Gang and Her Religion
Granting in part the petition for review, the court held that the BIA erred in not recognizing the nexus that the petitioner established between the persecution she suffered at the hands of the MS-13 gang and her Evangelical Christian faith. (Chicas-Machado v. Garland, 7/13/23)
CA8 Finds Mexican Petitioner Did Not Show Requisite Prejudice in Due Process Claim
The court held that BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying petitioner’s motion for reconsideration based on his due process claim where he had not shown actual prejudice, and found that the BIA’s application of the wrong legal standard was immaterial. (Arroyo-Sosa v. Garland, 7/13/23)
CA8 Finds Petitioner’s Nebraska Convictions for Shoplifting Were Not Aggravated Felonies
The court held that the BIA erred in finding the petitioner removable for having committed a theft offense—and thus an aggravated felony—based upon his Nebraska shoplifting convictions, because the statute of conviction was broader than the generic federal offense. (Thok v. Garland, 7/13/23)
CA4 Finds Petitioners Entitled to Rescission Because Immigration Court Lacked Authority to Order Them Removed In Absentia
The court held that, pursuant to INA §240(b)(5)(A), the petitioners were entitled to rescission of their in absentia removal orders where their initial Notices to Appear (NTAs) failed to contain the date and time of their hearing. (Lazo-Gavidia v. Garland, 7/12/23)
Southern California Chapter ICE ERO Contact List (7/11/23)
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Los Angeles Field Office contact list as of 7/11/23.
Policy Brief: Guiding Principles for an Electronic Service of the Notice to Appear
Recent developments in technology and increased migration encounters have generated interest in creating electronic systems for processing and serving NTAs. AILA provides a policy brief that outlines the parameters electronic systems and electronic service must have in order to preserve due process.
CA4 Says Petitioner’s PSG of “Young Male Family Members of His Cousin Emily” Was Legally Cognizable
The court held that BIA erred in concluding that petitioner’s proposed particular social group (PSG) of “young male family members of his cousin Emily” was not legally cognizable, and remanded for BIA to further consider his withholding of removal claim. (Santos Garcia v. Garland, 7/11/23)
CA4 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Salvadoran Petitioner After Finding IJ Adequately Developed the Record
The court upheld the BIA’s conclusion that the IJ had adequately developed the record and had properly determined that the basis for the petitioner’s claims for relief was a generalized fear of criminal gang members and violent conditions in El Salvador. (Tepas v. Garland, 7/10/23)
CA5 Finds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review BIA’s Order Denying Withholding of Removal to Salvadoran Petitioner
The court held that the BIA’s denial of withholding of removal was not a final order of removal, and found that the petition for review was untimely because it was filed more than 30 days after the petitioner’s reinstatement order had become final. (Argueta-Hernandez v. Garland, 7/10/23)
CA4 Vacates Denial of Asylum After Finding Aspects of BIA’s Decision Required Clarification
The court remanded for the BIA to clarify its determination that the Chinese petitioner could not show changed circumstances that would reset the clock for seeking asylum under INA §208(a)(2)(D) and to apply Zambrano v. Sessions in the first instance. (Chen v. Garland, 7/6/23)
CA4 Grants Asylum to Pakistani Petitioner Who Aided United States During Afghanistan War
The court remanded for the BIA to grant asylum to petitioner, a Pakistani businessman who had aided the United States during the war in Afghanistan, finding that any reasonable adjudicator would find that petitioner faced a well-founded threat of future persecution. (Ullah v. Garland, 7/6/23)
CA8 Finds Mexican Petitioner Failed to Show Membership in Any of His 12 Proposed PSGs
Upholding the denial of asylum and related relief as to the Mexican petitioner, the court held that the BIA did not err in concluding that none of the petitioner’s 12 proposed particular social groups (PSGs) was cognizable for asylum purposes. (Uriostegui-Teran v. Garland, 7/6/23)
CA9 Declines to Rehear Mendoza-Linares v. Garland En Banc
The court denied the petition for rehearing en banc in the case, which held that Congress has precluded the court from asserting jurisdiction over the merits of individual expedited removal orders, even with regard to constitutional challenges. (Mendoza-Linares v. Garland, 7/5/23)
CA7 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Honduran Petitioner Whose Family Was Involved in a Feud with Another Family
The court upheld the denial of asylum to the petitioner—who had fled his home in Honduras due to a murderous feud between his family and another family—finding that he had failed to show that the Honduran government was unable or unwilling to protect him. (Osorio-Morales v. Garland, 7/5/23)
CA11 Finds IJ and BIA Misinterpreted “Extreme Cruelty” in INA §240A(b)(2) as Requiring Proof of Physical Violence
Granting the petition for review and remanding, the court agreed with the petitioner that the IJ and the BIA misinterpreted INA §240A(b)(2) and thereby applied an erroneous legal standard in evaluating her request for cancellation of removal. (Ruiz v. Att’y Gen., 5/18/23, amended 7/5/23)
The Immigration and Nationality Act’s Lost Appellate Rights Warnings
AILA Law Journal author Christopher Boom shares some insights into his recent article, noting that “Taking away appellate rights from noncitizens for not going to their hearings without warning them of this possibility first“ is unjust and contrary to the will of Congress.
CA3 Remands for Rescission of In Absentia Removal Order Where NTA Lacked Date and Time of Removal Hearing
Where the petitioner’s initial Notice to Appear (NTA) omitted the date and time of her removal hearing, the court remanded for the BIA to rescind her in absentia removal order, because no change or postponement occurred and DHS never issued a new NTA. (Madrid-Mancia v. Att’y Gen., 7/3/23)
Southern California Chapter OPLA Los Angeles Contact List (July 2023)
Southern California Chapter OPLA Los Angeles contact list as of July 2023.
Southern California Chapter Unit Prosecution Chart (July 2023)
Southern California Chapter Unit Prosecution Chart as of July 2023.