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
South Florida Miami Immigration Court Legal Admin. Specialist/Legal Assistant Assignments
Miami Immigration Court Legal Admin. Specialist /Legal Assistant Assignments and contact information effective as of 12/10/2020.
New Rule Spells Death for the Asylum System - AILA and the Council Urge the Biden Administration to Prioritize Its Undoing
AILA and American Immigration Council leadership respond to the latest asylum regulation that would make it nearly impossible for most applicants to successfully claim humanitarian protection in the United States.
EOIR Issues Memo on Pro Bono Legal Services
EOIR issued a memo (PM 21-08) consolidating and updating EOIR policies related to pro bono legal services. This memo replaces OPPM 97-1, Maintaining the List of Free Legal Service Providers, and OPPM 08-01, Guidelines for Facilitating Pro Bono Legal Services.
EOIR Issues Memo Setting Forth Updated Adjournment, Call-Up, and Case Identification Codes
EOIR issued a policy memo (PM 21-07) rescinding PM 20-08, Definitions and Use of Adjournment, Call-Up, and Case Identification Codes, dated February 13, 2020, and setting forth updated codes used to track the case hearing process.
USCIS Provides Update on DACA Following Court Order Reinstating the Program
USCIS announced that in response to the 12/4/20 court order, effective 12/7/20, it will accept first-time requests for consideration of deferred action under DACA, accept renewal requests, accept applications for advance parole documents, and extend grants of deferred action and EADs to two years.
CA9 Holds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review IJs’ Denials of Petitioners’ Motions to Reopen Credible Fear Proceedings
The court dismissed the petitions for review of the IJ’s decisions denying the petitioners’ motions to reopen their credible fear determinations on the basis that IJs lack jurisdiction to reopen credible fear proceedings under 8 CFR §1208.30(g)(2)(iv)(A). (Singh v. Barr, 12/9/20)
Continued Impact: Search for Separated Families and Availability of Mental Health Services
An NGO-led steering committee is searching for separated families and urge attorneys and families to call a dedicated 1-800 number to confirm their reunification status. The committee may also be able to connect separated families with other services including free mental health services.
CA10 Upholds CAT Denial as to Nigerian Petitioner Who Alleged He Was Attacked for His Homosexuality
The court upheld the denial of Convention Against Torture (CAT) relief as to petitioner, who alleged he had been attacked in Nigeria in 2006 because of his homosexuality, finding that the BIA’s adverse credibility determination was supported by substantial evidence. (Igiebor v. Barr, 12/7/20)
DOJ’s Immigration Court Practice Manual (Updated on 12/7/20)
On December 7, 2020, the OCIJ updated its Immigration Court Practice Manual, a comprehensive guide on uniform procedures, recommendations, and requirements for practice before immigration courts.
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief on the Meaning of “Obstruction of Justice”
AILA submitted an amicus brief in Silva v. Barr urging the court to reject BIA’s definition of “obstruction of justice” and to find that plain meaning of the obstruction of justice aggravated felony provision requires interference in an ongoing judicial proceeding or grand jury investigation.
EOIR Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Electronic Filing and Law Student Filing
EOIR notice of proposed rulemaking which would implement electronic filing and records applications for all cases before the immigration courts and the BIA. The proposed rule would also make changes to the regulations regarding law student filing and accompaniment procedures. (85 FR 78240, 12/4/20)
BIA Rules on Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
BIA ruled that counsel accepting responsibility of error does not discharge the disciplinary authority complaint obligation, and respondents seeking reopening based on ineffective counsel must show probability they would’ve prevailed otherwise. Matter of Melgar, 28 I&N Dec. 169 (BIA 2020)
District Court Orders DHS to Fully Restore DACA Program
District court orders DHS to accept first-time requests for DACA, renewal requests, and advance parole requests, based on the terms of the DACA program prior to 9/5/17 and that one-year deferred action and EADs must be extended to two years. (Batalla Vidal, et al., v. Wolf, et al., 12/4/20)
EOIR Issues Memo Consolidating and Updating Policy Regarding the Processing of Asylum Applications
EOIR issued a policy memo (PM 21-06) consolidating and replacing OPPM 00-01 and OPPM 13-02. The memo concerns the processing of affirmative and defensive asylum applications, the asylum and EAD clocks, docketing and scheduling, BIA appeals, and more. This memo was rescinded 4/18/22.
CBP Says Program to Collect DNA Samples from Certain Individuals in Custody Will Reach Full Operation by End of 2020
CBP announced that the pilot programs it began in January 2020 to assess collection of DNA samples from certain individuals in CBP custody have provided the information it needs to implement nationwide collection. Per CBP, the collection program will reach full operation by December 31, 2020.
Practice Alert: New Scheduling Orders in Removal Proceedings
AILA has received numerous reports that members across the country have received “scheduling orders” from various immigration courts, setting short deadlines for the filing of written pleadings and applications for relief.
Template Letter to Members of Congress to Request Oversight of ICE Detention Centers
AILA Chapter Leaders are encouraged to personalize this template and email members of Congress to ask them to conduct oversight of ICE detention centers in their jurisdiction.
ICYMI: EOIR Issues Guidance on “Enhanced Case Flow Processing” in Removal Proceedings
EOIR issued guidance on the implementation of an enhanced case flow processing model for non-status, non-detained cases with representation in removal proceedings. Memo is effective 12/1/20.
CA11 Says INA §241(a)(5) Bars Reopening of Reinstated Removal Order Where Noncitizen Unlawfully Reentered After Removal
The court concluded that the plain language of INA §241(a)(5) bars the reopening of a reinstated removal order where a noncitizen has illegally reentered the United States following his or her initial removal, and thus denied the petition for review. (Alfaro-Garcia v. Att’y Gen., 11/30/20)
District Court Rejects Challenge to DHS’s Expedited Removal Pilot Programs
The district court found that DHS’s new detention-placement policy of the Prompt Asylum Claim Review (PACR) and Humanitarian Asylum Review Process (HARP) programs did not violate statutory, regulatory, or constitutional requirements. (Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center v. Wolf, 11/30/20)
EOIR Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to Define “Good Cause”
EOIR notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to define the term “good cause” in the context of continuances, adjournments, and postponements. Comments are due 12/28/20. (85 FR 75925, 11/27/20)
EOIR Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Motions to Reopen, Motions to Reconsider, and Stays of Removal
Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would amend EOIR regulations governing the filing and adjudication of motions to reopen and reconsider and add regulations governing requests for discretionary stays of removal. Comments are due 12/28/20. (85 FR 75942, 11/27/20)
CA4 Finds BIA Abused Its Discretion in Denying Asylum to Former Colombian Police Officer
The court held that the BIA erred in deciding that the petitioner, a retired Colombian police officer, had not shown past persecution because threats by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) were written, and because he was never physically approached. (Bedoya v. Barr, 11/25/20)
District Court Approves Settlement Agreement Between L.A. County Sheriff’s Department and Inmates over ICE Holds
The district court preliminarily approved a settlement agreement under which the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department will pay $14,000,000 to former inmates detained beyond the expiration of their state criminal charges pursuant to immigration detainers. (Roy v. County of Los Angeles, 11/25/20)
CA6 Upholds Matter of Castro-Tum and Says IJs Lack General Authority to Administratively Close Cases
The court found that the Attorney General correctly interpreted 8 CFR §§1003.10 and 1003.1(d) in Matter of Castro-Tum in holding that IJs do not have the general authority to suspend indefinitely immigration proceedings by administrative closure. (Hernandez-Serrano v. Barr, 11/24/20)