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
DHS Issues Statement on Immigration Enforcement During the 2021 Wildfire Season
DHS issued a statement, indicating that during the 2021 wildfire season “Absent exigent circumstances, immigration enforcement will not be conducted at locations where disaster and emergency response and relief is being provided.”
District Court Blocks Filing of New DACA Applications
A district court found that DHS violated the APA with the creation of DACA and its continued operation, stating that the DACA memo and the DACA program that it created are hereby vacated and remanded to DHS for further consideration. (Texas v. United States, 7/16/21)
AILA: No Surprise that Texas Judge Puts Politics Ahead of Sound Legal Precedent
AILA President Allen Orr and Executive Director Benjamin Johnson responded to the ruling by Texas federal judge Andrew Hanen against the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in this statement, urging the administration and Congress to protect Dreamers.
Miami EOIR Records Request Form
Records Request Form for the U.S. Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review, Immigration Court in South Florida.
CA5 Finds Petitioner’s Conviction in Texas for Delivering Cocaine Was Included in CSA
The court denied the petition for review, finding that the petitioner’s conviction in Texas for delivering cocaine under Texas Health and Safety Code §481.112 was included in the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). (Ochoa-Salgado v. Garland, 7/16/21)
CA6 Finds BIA Correctly Determined That INA §241(a)(5) Precluded Reopening of Petitioner’s Removal Order
The court determined that the BIA correctly denied the petitioner’s motion to reopen, holding that the petitioner’s original removal order was not subject to being reopened because he had illegally reentered the United States pursuant to INA §241(a)(5). (Sanchez-Gonzalez v. Garland, 7/16/21)
CA8 Vacates BIA’s Decision Finding That Petitioner’s Conviction for Enticing a Minor in Iowa Was a “Crime of Child Abuse”
Where the BIA had held that the petitioner was removable because his conviction for enticing a minor in violation of Iowa Code §710.10(3) constituted a “crime of child abuse,” the court granted the petition for review, vacated the BIA’s decision, and remanded. (Pah Peh v. Garland, 7/16/21)
EOIR Announces 10 New Immigration Judges
EOIR announced 10 new Immigration Judges, including one Assistant Chief Immigration Judge.
CA3 Reverses Denial of CAT Relief Where IJ’s Decision Did Not Refer to Record Evidence
Where the IJ had failed to provide a citation or reference to the record in denying the petitioner’s Convention Against Torture (CAT) claim, the court found that the IJ’s decision was not supported by substantial evidence. (Valarezo-Tirado v. Att’y Gen., 7/15/21)
AG Overrules Matter of Castro-Tum and Returns to Matter of Avetisyan and W-Y-U-
The Attorney General stated that while the rulemaking proceeds and except when a court of appeals has held otherwise, IJs and the BIA should apply the standard for administrative closure set out in Avetisyan and W-Y-U-. Matter of Cruz-Valdez, 28 I&N Dec. 326 (A.G. 2021)
Practice Alert: Template for CRCL Complaint Regarding Failures to Provide Language Access
The American Immigration Council and other detention advocacy partners have created a template to file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) on behalf of clients who have faced language access violations. Please customize and use it to file similar complaints.
AG Garland Gives Immigration Judges Back Authority to Administratively Close Cases
Attorney General Merrick Garland vacated the precedent decision in Matter of Castro-Tum, restoring “administrative closure,” a key tool used by immigration judges for decades to manage dockets and increase efficiency.
DHS OIG Issues Report on Violations of ICE Detention Standards at Adams County Correctional Center
DHS OIG conducted an unannounced inspection of the Adams County Correctional Center to evaluate compliance with ICE detention standards and COVID-19 requirements and made seven recommendations to improve ICE oversight.
South Florida EOIR Stakeholders’ Meeting Notes (7/14/21)
Notes from the EOIR Stakeholders’ Meeting on July 14, 2021.
DHS OIG Issues Report on NTAs to MPP Enrollees
DHS OIG conducted an audit to determine the extent to which DHS provided accurate notices to appear (NTAs) to Migrant Protection Protocols enrollees, finding that out of 106 NTAs issued, 20 that did not meet legal sufficiency standards or contained inaccurate information.
CA9 Finds Substantial Evidence Supported BIA’s Implausibility Findings with Respect to Petitioners’ Testimony
Upholding the denial of asylum to petitioners, an Armenian family, the court held that substantial evidence supported the adverse credibility determination as to the husband based on implausibilities in the record, and as to the wife based on evasive testimony. (Lalayan v. Garland, 7/13/21)
OPLA Miami Scheduling, Attorney/Client Assignments (July 12 - August 6, 2021)
OPLA Miami scheduling for all non-detained from July 12 to August 6, 2021. These assignments were based upon dockets published by EOIR.
CA5 Grants Stay Pending Review of Petition to Political Dissident in India
The court found that the IJ’s incredibly high denial rate for asylum applications, along with her noncompliance with Matter of R-K-K-, presented a substantial likelihood that petitioner would be entitled to relief upon full consideration by a merits panel. (Singh v. Garland, 7/12/21)
CA7 Upholds Denial of Asylum Based on Political Opinion to Ukrainian Petitioner
The court held that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s conclusion that the petitioner’s experience in Ukraine did not rise to the level of persecution, and that she had failed to show that the new Ukrainian government would persecute her if she returned. (Chuchman v. Garland, 7/12/21)
CA8 Holds That IJ Articulated Specific and Cogent Reasons for Concluding That Petitioner Was Not Credible
The court upheld the BIA’s affirmance of the IJ’s denial of asylum, finding that the IJ had articulated specific, cogent reasons for concluding that the petitioner’s testimony was not credible, and that those reasons were supported by substantial evidence. (Coto-Albarenga v. Garland, 7/12/21)
CA9 Remands Where IJ Failed to Credit Petitioner’s Specific Evidence of Taint
Granting in part the petition for review, the court held that the IJ erred by failing to credit evidence showing that proof of the petitioner’s alienage was tainted because it was obtained from his juvenile court records in violation of California privacy laws. (B.R. v. Garland, 7/12/21)
Takeaways from Johnson v. Guzman Chavez
In this blog post, AILA President-elect Jeremy McKinney highlights the recent Supreme Court decision in Johnson v. Guzman Chavez, which he writes offers a takeaway “for practitioners is to push back when an agency employs Auer or Chevron deference as a shield protecting its faulty administrative dec
ICE 30-Day Extension of Comment Period on New “Flight Manifest/Billing Agreement”
ICE 30-day extension of a comment period previously announced at 86 FR 22246 on 4/27/21 on a new information collection titled “Flight Manifest/Billing Agreement.” Comments are now due 8/9/21. (86 FR 36292, 7/9/21)
CA2 Finds That IJ Considered Sua Sponte the Social Groups Raised by Petitioner on Appeal
The court upheld the BIA’s denial of the petitioner’s withholding of removal claim, finding that the IJ sua sponte considered the social groups now identified by petitioner, and that the IJ’s decision to deny withholding was supported by substantial evidence. (Quintanilla v. Garland, 7/9/21)
CA4 Finds Honduran Petitioner’s Membership in Her Nuclear Family Was At Least One Central Reason for Her Persecution
The court held that the BIA and IJ erred in concluding that the petitioner had failed to demonstrate that she was persecuted in Honduras on account of her membership in her proposed particular social group, namely her nuclear family. (Perez Vasquez v. Garland, 7/9/21)