Featured Issue: Asylum Under Trump 2.0
On the first day of his second term, President Trump suspended all entries at the U.S. Southern Border for asylum seekers. Since then, the Administration has implemented sweeping restrictions that shut America’s doors to people fleeing persecution. These policies violate federal law, erode constitutionally protected due process, exacerbate the asylum backlog, and give those seeking safety an increasingly narrow path to protection.
Left unchecked by Congress, these policies will have dire consequences for both asylum seekers and the integrity of our legal system. Asylum seekers—especially those without access to counsel—are at grave risk of being returned to harm.
It doesn’t have to be this way. The Administration can maintain order at U.S. borders and effectively manage migration without sacrificing fairness and adherence to the law. With more trained asylum officers, a streamlined legal process, legal representation for asylum seekers, and more effective coordination between relevant agencies, the U.S. can establish a safe, orderly, and humane asylum system.
Browse the Featured Issue: Asylum Under Trump 2.0 collection
USCIS Memo on Implementation of Reasonable Fear Processing Timelines
USCIS memo dated 4/17/12 on implementing reasonable fear processing timelines and reporting mechanisms. The memo revises the 2003 “Draft Reasonable Fear Procedures Manual,” and updates the 2005 “User's Guide to Entering Information in the Asylum Pre-Screening System.”
BIA on Refugees in Removal Proceedings
The BIA held that a refugee who has not adjusted status can be placed in removal proceedings without a prior inadmissibility determination by DHS, but that the charges of removability must be under INA § 237, not § 212. Matter of D-K-, 25 I&N Dec. 761 (BIA 2012)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Cancellation of Removal Based on False Testimony
The court found it had authority to review the decision on the petitioner’s cancellation of removal application, upheld the IJ and BIA’s adverse credibility determination, and found that he was statutorily barred from relief. (Restrepo v. Holder, 4/12/12)
CA1 Issues Final Judgment in 18-Year-Old Asylum Case
The court found authority to issue a final judgment in the asylum case of a former Peruvian military officer, noting that it explicitly retained jurisdiction over the case after remanding to the BIA in 2011. (Castaneda-Castillo v. Holder, 4/12/12)
CA11 on Right to Confidentiality in Asylum Proceedings
The court affirmed the adverse credibility finding, and found the investigator’s disclosure of the petitioner’s name to a Ukrainian hospital administrator did not breach her right to confidentiality in the asylum process. (Lyashchynska v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 4/4/12)
CA9 on Standard of Review for Particularly Serious Crime Determination
The court held that determining whether a crime is particularly serious for the purposes of a withholding claim is an inherently discretionary decision, and that they will review such decisions for abuse of discretion. (Arbid v. Holder, 4/3/12, amended 11/9/12)
Presidential Memo on Urgent Refugee and Migration Needs
Presidential memorandum authorizing no more than $26 million from U.S. Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund for the purpose of meeting urgent refugee and migration need related to humanitarian crisis in South Kordofan and Blue Nile States of Sudan.
IJ Grants Asylum to Salvadoran Youth Targeted for Gang Reprisal
The Immigration Judge found that the applicant had a well-founded fear of future persecution on account of his family ties, where the applicant’s father had been convicted of raping the sister of a gang member and the gang sought revenge. Courtesy of Nikki Mehrpoo Jacobson.
BIA Remands Egyptian Asylum Case
In an unpublished decision, the Board reversed a decision denying asylum, noting that a persecutor “may have several reasons for harming a victim and proving the exact reason for the past or feared persecution may be impossible in some cases." Courtesy of David Cleveland.
DOS Notice of Public Meeting on FY2013 U.S. Refugee Admissions Program
DOS notice of public meeting on the President’s FY2013 U.S. Refugee Admissions Program on Tuesday, May 1, 2012. The meeting’s purpose is to hear the views of attendees on the appropriate size and scope of the FY2013 U.S. Refugee Admissions Program. (77 FR 19408, 3/30/12)
CA1 Finds No Changed Country Conditions in Chinese Asylum Case
The court affirmed the BIA’s conclusion that reopening of the Chinese petitioner’s asylum case was unwarranted due to his failure to establish a change in circumstances or country conditions. (Chen v. Holder, 3/30/12)
AILA/EOIR Liaison Meeting Q&As (3/29/12)
Official questions and answers from an AILA EOIR Liaison Committee meeting with the EOIR on 3/29/12. Topics include rulemaking updates, prosecutorial discretion, the practice manual, laptops in the courtroom, subpoenas, telephonic testimony, limited appearances, and more.
USCIS Q&As from AILA Meeting (3/29/12)
USCIS Q&As from its 3/29/12 meeting with AILA Liaison. Topics include preponderance of evidence standard, entrepreneurs and small businesses, EAD and the asylum clock, AAO, customer service, lockbox issues, and more.
CA2 Rejects Matter of H-L-H- & Z-Y-Z-
The court rejected the BIA’s holding in Matter of H-L-H- & Z-Y-Z- to conclude that the IJ’s finding a future event will occur if an applicant is removed is a finding of fact subject to review for clear error. (Huang v. Holder, 3/27/12)
USCIS Provides TRIG Statistics from 3/20/12 Meeting
Statistics provided by USCIS at a TRIG Stakeholder meeting held on 3/20/12, including statistics on exemptions granted by category, exemptions denied by type of application, and cases on hold by type of application.
CA5 Denies Algerian Asylum and Withholding Case
The court found that the petitioner’s asylum application was untimely, rejecting the argument that his last arrival was a continuing event that began when he became an “arriving alien,” and upheld the denial of withholding of removal. (Bouchikhi v. Holder, 3/8/12)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Gang-Related Asylum Claim
The court upheld the denial of the Salvadoran petitioner’s asylum claim, which was based on the petitioner’s resistance to gang recruitment and his anti-gang political opinion. (Mayorga-Vidal v. Holder, 3/16/12)
CA1 Remands Asylum Case Due to Faulty Credibility Determination
The court remanded the asylum case, noting that the IJ did not present a reasoned analysis of the evidence as a whole, and finding that the IJ relied on at least two perceived “inconsistencies” that were not direct inconsistencies. (Jabri v. Holder, 3/16/12)
CA1 Seeks Clarification on Credibility and Corroboration Issues
The court found that the BIA failed to address two central issues in the Ethiopian asylum case and remanded to the BIA to clarify questions relating to credibility and corroborating evidence. (Guta-Tolossa v. Holder, 3/16/12)
CA8 on Corroboration and Transcript Deficiencies
The court found that the IJ did not err in requiring further corroborative evidence to support the asylum application, but remanded to determine whether transcript deficiencies masked testimony that corroborative testimony was unavailable. (Omondi v. Holder, 3/15/12)
CA1 Finds No Jurisdiction to Review Cancellation Denial
The court held that it did not have jurisdiction to review the denial of the Bangladeshi petitioner’s cancellation of removal application, and found that the decision to deny asylum and withholding was supported by substantial evidence. (Hasan v. Holder, 3/12/12)
ICE Detention Policy for Individuals Granted Protection Relief
A 3/6/12 email from ICE ERO Executive Associate Director Gary Mead to ICE field offices, reminding them of ICE’s policy to favor the release of detained individuals who have been granted protection relief by an immigration judge, barring exceptional concerns.
CA8 Upholds Social Visibility/Particularity Inquiries in Asylum Claim
The court denied the petitioner’s gang-based asylum claim, and upheld “social visibility” and “particularity” as requirements for establishing membership in a particular social group. (Gaitan v. Holder, 3/1/12)
VOICE: March/April 2012
Spring into the March/April edition of VOICE! This issue contains great information and helpful tips on hiring the right employees for your firm, I-129 forms, prosecutorial discretion, and more! Plus, watch AILA’s first animated video, “The Impossible Dream.”
DOJ OIL February 2012 Litigation Bulletin
The DOJ Office of Immigration Litigation (OIL) February 2012 Litigation Bulletin with major asylum cases including First Circuit ruling that generalized political motive underlying a persecutor’s mistreatment does not establish persecution on account of political opinion.