Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE
This resource page combines resources for attorneys representing clients before ICE. For information about why AILA is calling for the reduction and phasing out of immigration detention, please see our Featured Issue Page: Immigration Detention and Alternatives to Detention.
Quick Links
- Seeking Stays of Removal
- AILA Practice Pointers and Alerts (continually updated)
- Practice Advisory: Representing Detained Clients in the Virtual Landscape
- Practice Pointer: How to Locate Clients Apprehended by ICE
- Practice Pointer: Preparing for an Order of Supervision Appointment with ICE-ERO
- AILA ICE Liaison Agenda and Meeting Minutes
Communicating with OPLA, ERO, and CROs
The Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) includes 1300 attorneys who represent the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in immigration removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). OPLA litigates all removal cases as well as provides legal counsel to ICE personnel. At present, there are 25 field locations throughout the United States.
Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) manages all aspects of immigration enforcement from arrest, detention, and removal. ERO has 24 field office locations. ERO also manages an “alternative to detention” program that relies almost exclusively on the “Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP)” to monitor individuals in removal proceedings.
Since 2016, ICE has had an Office of Partnership and Engagement (formerly Office of Community Engagement) to be a link between the agency and stakeholders. As part of this office, Community Relations Officers (CROS) are assigned to every field office to work with local stakeholders such as attorneys and nonprofit organizations.
*Headquarters does not provide direct contact numbers or emails for individual employees.* (AILA Liaison Meeting with ICE on April 26, 2023)(AILA Doc. No. 23033004). However, attorneys can contact Chapter Local ICE Liaisons as they may have this information provided to them via local liaison engagement.
- DHS/ICE/OPLA Chief Counsel Contact Information [last updated in 2024, this list no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- Contact Information for Local OPLA Offices [last updated in 2024, this information no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- ERO Field Offices Contact Information*
- OPE Community Relations Officers
- ICE Check-In Scheduling Website
- ICE Online Change of Address Website
Latest on Enforcement Priorities & Prosecutorial Discretion
Executive Order 14159 (90 FR 8443, 1/29/25) directs DHS to set priorities that protect the public safety and national security interests of the American people, including by ensuring the successful enforcement of final orders of removal, enforcement of the INA and other Federal laws related to the illegal entry and unlawful presence of [noncitizens] in the United States and the enforcement of the purposes of this order. Given the January 25, 2025, confirmation of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, a memorandum detailing enforcement priorities may be issued in the coming weeks.
An unpublished ICE memo from acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello entitled “Interim Guidance: Civil Immigration Enforcement Actions in or near Courthouses” makes reference to targeted noncitizens and includes:
- National security or public safety threats;
- Those with criminal convictions;
- Gang members;
- Those who have been ordered removed from the United States but have failed to depart; and/or
- Those who have re-entered the country illegally after being removed.
Procedures and email inboxes created under the Biden Administration to request Prosecutorial Discretion no longer appear on the ICE website. AILA members are encouraged to review current DOJ regulations entitled “Efficient Case and Docket Management in Immigration Proceedings” for alternative basis for seeking termination or administrative closure.
Access to Counsel
- ERO eFile:
- An online system developed to electronically file G-28s with ERO. Attorneys and accredited representatives may register for ERO eFile accounts and may also sponsor law students and law graduates who work under their supervision. See AILA’s practice alert (AILA Doc. No. 24051506) for more information.
- ICE Attorney Information and Resources Page
- AILA Practice Alert: Updates to the ICE Attorney Information and Resource Page
Filing Administrative Complaints on Behalf of Detained and Formerly Detained Clients
- Online Intake Form for the Detention Ombudsman (myOIDO)
- Available for complaints for issues in ICE and CBP Custody nationwide, including to submit complaints about access to counsel problems on behalf of currently or previously detained clients.
- Online Complaint Form for DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL)
- Oversight of Immigration Detention: An Overview - May 16, 2022
(provides a list of agencies with which attorneys may file administrative complaints of detention center violations) - Immigration Judge Complaint Toolkit – August 31, 2022
- Practice Alert: Template for CRCL Complaint Regarding Failures to Provide Language Access – July 16, 2021
Selected ICE Policies and Current Status
For comprehensive comparison of current and prior ICE policies, please review the “Immigration Policy Tracker (IPTP).” The IPTP is a project of Professor Lucas Guttentag working with teams of Stanford and Yale law students and leading national immigration experts.
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Browse the Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE collection
BIA Holds IJs Must Conduct In Absentia Hearing Where Record Contains Evidence of Alienage Despite DHS Nonappearance
The BIA held that where respondent is charged as present without admission or parole, neither party appears, and the record contains evidence of alienage, the IJ errs in terminating proceedings instead of conducting an in absentia hearing. Matter of Bolivar-Bolivar, 29 I&N Dec. 548 (BIA 2026)
EOIR to Stop Hearings at San Francisco Immigration Court’s Montgomery Street Location
EOIR announced it will stop holding hearings at the San Francisco Immigration Court’s Montgomery Street location after 5/1/26. Some cases will be reassigned to the court’s Sansome Street location, and filings for such cases should be filed at the Sansome Street location beginning 5/4/26.
AILA Files Amicus Brief in CA9 Defending Right to Counsel in Reasonable Fear Proceedings
AILA argued that meaningful access to counsel is essential in reasonable fear proceedings. Despite requesting counsel, the detained petitioner was forced to proceed pro se at the RF interview and IJ review, undermining statutory and due process protections. (Amador-Canacas v. Bondi, 4/9/26)
AILA and the Council File Public Comment in Opposition to New BIA Interim Final Rule
AILA and the American Immigration Council urge DOJ/EOIR to withdraw the BIA Appellate Procedures IFR, arguing it unlawfully cuts appeal time to 10 days, makes summary dismissal the default without a complete record, burdens counsel, and shifts errors and caseloads to federal courts.
EOIR Announces 15 Immigration Judges and 17 Temporary Immigration Judges
EOIR announced the investiture of 15 immigration judges and 17 temporary immigration judges in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington.
BIA Holds That Lay Testimony Is Generally Insufficient for Hardship Where Medical Evidence Is Reasonably Available
The BIA held that lay testimony alone is generally insufficient to establish exceptional and extremely unusual hardship for cancellation of removal under INA §240A(b)(1)(D) where expert medical evidence could reasonably have been produced. Matter of Pelagio Mendoza, 29 I&N Dec. 542 (BIA 2026)
BIA Reaffirms That Obstruction of Justice Offenses Require Specific Intent and Finds California Accessory Conviction Is an Aggravated Felony
The BIA reaffirmed that an obstruction of justice offense requires specific intent to interfere with the process of law, and held that a California accessory to a felony conviction categorically qualifies as an aggravated felony. Matter of Valenzuela Gallardo, 29 I&N Dec. 536 (BIA 2026)
CA8 Holds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review DHS Removal Discretion and Finds Petitioner Waived Due Process Claim
The court held that the petitioner waived her due process argument based on IJ bias by failing to meaningfully raise it before the BIA, and found that it lacked jurisdiction to review DHS’s exercise of removal discretion. (Quijano-Duran, et al. v. Bondi, 4/2/26)
CA9 Holds BIA Applied Wrong Diligence Standard and Finds “Stateless” Petitioner Acted with Due Diligence
The court held that the BIA employed the wrong diligence standard in upholding the IJ’s denial of the petitioner’s second motion to reopen and that the petitioner acted with due diligence in pursuing vacatur of the conviction on which her removal order was based. (Eskilian v. Bondi, 4/2/26)
CA9 Finds No Impermissible Retroactivity in Applying Reinstatement Provision and Petitioner Failed to Show Prejudice
The court held that applying IIRAIRA’s reinstatement provision to the petitioner was not impermissibly retroactive, and that a petitioner must show prejudice to obtain relief for an alleged denial of counsel in reinstatement proceedings. (Verduzco Ruiz v. Bondi, 4/1/26)
CA3 Holds That Abuser’s LPR or Citizen Status at Time of Application Satisfies Special Rule Cancellation Requirement
The court granted in part the petition for review, holding that for special rule cancellation under INA §240A(b)(2)(A)(i)(II), an abuser may be a lawful permanent resident (LPR) or U.S. citizen at any time before the application is adjudicated. (Cardenas v. Att’y Gen., 3/31/26)
Client Flyer: Common Terms Used in Removal Proceedings
AILA provides a flyer to help your clients understand common terms used in removal proceedings. The flyer is available as a generic PDF version and a Word version you can customize with your firm's information. The PDF is also available in Arabic, Chinese, French, and Spanish. Please share.
BIA Holds Objection to Defective NTA Is Forfeited If Not Raised by Respondent and Requires In Absentia Proceedings Where Proper Notice Was Provided
The BIA held that an objection to a defective NTA is forfeited if not timely raised by respondent, and that where a respondent fails to appear but received proper notice of the hearing, the IJ should proceed in absentia and not terminate. Matter of Lopez-Orellana, 29 I&N Dec. 533 (BIA 2026)
CA2 Holds That BIA Misread Petitioner’s Arguments in Finding He Failed to Act with Reasonable Due Diligence for Equitable Tolling
The court held that the BIA abused its discretion in denying the petitioner’s motion to reopen based on a change in law that arguably entitled him to relief from removal, finding that the BIA’s conclusion relied on a misreading of the petitioner’s arguments. (Ramsay v. Bondi, 3/27/26)
DHS Notice Extends Finding of Mass Influx of Aliens
DHS notice stating that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem is further extending the “Finding of Mass Influx of Aliens” first issued 1/23/25. This extension, dated 1/12/26, will expire in 180 days. (91 FR 14703, 3/26/26)
AILA Congressional Briefing on 3/26: Administration Policies Weaken Asylum System and Immigration Courts
On 3/26, AILA briefed Congress on three policy briefs from the A Better Way on Immigration series focusing on the Administration’s policy changes made over the past year to pursue its mass deportation campaign, weaken the asylum system, and make the immigration courts less efficient and independent.
BIA Finds That IJs Must Identify Evidence Rebutting Presumption of Reliability of Form I-213 in Alienage Determination
The BIA held that where an IJ finds that a Form I-213 is unreliable and insufficient to establish alienage, the IJ must point to specific evidence in the record sufficient to rebut the presumption of reliability. Matter of Mercado-Martinez, 29 I&N Dec. 529 (BIA 2026)
CA8 Holds That Unadmitted Noncitizens Present in the United States Are “Seeking Admission” and Subject to Mandatory Detention
The court reversed the grant of habeas relief to the Mexican petitioner, holding that an unadmitted noncitizen present in the United States is “seeking admission” and subject to mandatory detention under INA §235(b)(2)(A). (Avila v. Bondi, et al., 3/25/26)
CA4 Holds That Virginia 12-Month Maximum Sentence Qualifies as “One Year or Longer” for CIMT Removability
The court denied the petitions for review, holding that a Virginia Class 1 misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months qualifies as a crime for which a sentence of one year or longer may be imposed under INA §237(a)(2)(A)(i). (Perdomo Ulloa v. Bondi, 3/25/26)
CA5 Upholds Denial of CAT Deferral as to Salvadoran Petitioner Based on Lack of Specific Intent and Speculative Torture Risk
The court held that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s denial of CAT deferral to petitioner, concluding that El Salvador’s harsh prison conditions were not specifically intended to inflict torture and that the risk of future torture was speculative. (Fuentes-Pineda v. Bondi, 3/24/26)
CA9 Holds It Lacks Jurisdiction over Petition Challenging Only Denial of CAT Relief
The court dismissed the petition for review of the IJ’s order affirming a negative reasonable fear determination, holding that it lacks jurisdiction to hear a petition that challenges only the denial of relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). (Navarrete v. Bondi, 3/23/26)
EOIR Issues Policy Memorandum (PM) 26-03 on Judicial Conduct and Professionalism
EOIR Director Daren Margolin issued policy memorandum (PM) 26-03 to clarify EOIR’s process for addressing complaints of judicial misconduct by its adjudicators. The PM supersedes prior guidance on the judicial complaint process, last updated in November 2023.
Featured Issue: Ensuring Legal Representation for People Facing Removal
Despite the critical role legal representation plays in ensuring fairness in removal proceedings, the law still does not guarantee the government will pay for counsel if the person is unable to afford one. AILA provides resources on ensuring legal representation for people facing removal.
Policy Brief: America Needs Independent, Fair, and Efficient Immigration Courts
The Administration has implemented many changes to the immigration court system that undermines its ability to deliver fair outcomes consistent with the law. This brief explores these changes and provides recommendations to Congress to make the courts fairer, faster, and restore the public’s trust.
AILA Sends Letter to Leader Thune, Leader Schumer, Speaker Johnson, and Leader Jeffries on Funding for ICE and CBP
AILA President Jeff Joseph and Executive Director Ben Johnson sent a letter to Leader Thune, Leader Schumer, Speaker Johnson, and Leader Jeffries to block funding to ICE and CBP until meaningful reforms are enacted to hold these agencies accountable and restore safety to American communities.