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
ICE Releases Warning about Misinformation Concerning ICE Operations
ICE issued a press release about misinformation and rumors concerning ICE operations, noting that “allegations that ICE is violating its sensitive locations policy are completely false.” Among other things, ICE notes that it does not conduct “raids,” and does not need a warrant to make an arrest.
EOIR Announces Online Option for Checking Case Information
EOIR announced the addition of an online option for checking case information. The new service, available in English and Spanish, allows users to receive the most recent information about a case by inputting a unique A-Number. The automated case information hotline continues to be available.
BIA Upholds Termination of Proceedings Based on Regulatory Violation
Unpublished BIA decision upholds termination of proceedings based on DHS’s violation of 8 C.F.R. 287.3(d), which requires ICE to decide within 48 hours of arrest whether to grant bond and issue an NTA. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Pablo-Nicolas, 2/25/20)
TRAC Reports That ICE Sent Detainers to 3,671 Law Enforcement Agencies in FY2019
TRAC reports that 3,671 law enforcement agencies (LEAs) were sent detainers by ICE during FY2019, a decline of 6 percent compared to FY2018. A third of these LEAs received no more than three such requests during all of FY2019. Fifteen percent received an average of one or more detainers a week.
BIA Solicits Amicus Briefs on Notices to Appear, Due March 25
The BIA solicits amicus briefs, due 3/25, on whether an NTA lacking certain information is sufficient notice of the type of proceedings being initiated, sufficient for the purpose of establishing removability, and for DHS to remove an individual to a contiguous territory pending removal proceedings.
CA4 Holds IJ in Baltimore Failed to Give Asylum Seeker an Opportunity to Testify
The court vacated the BIA’s summary affirmance of the Baltimore IJ’s rulings and remanded for reconsideration of the petitioner’s asylum claim, finding that her due process rights were violated when an IJ in Baltimore deprived her of an opportunity to testify. (Atemnkeng v. Barr, 1/24/20)
EOIR Director Solicits Amicus Briefs on Requests for Reconsideration and Administrative Review, Due March 13
EOIR director solicits amicus briefs, due 3/13, on appropriate legal standard for evaluating requests for reconsideration and of review for an administrative review, and whether prior BIA precedent decisions are binding on consideration of requests for reconsideration and on administrative reviews.
BIA Solicits Amicus Briefs on the Sufficiency of Notices to Appear
The BIA solicits amicus briefs on whether an NTA that lacks certain information is sufficient notice of the type of proceedings being initiated, sufficient for purpose of establishing removability, and sufficient for DHS to remove an individual to a contiguous territory pending removal proceedings.
Three Mothers File Class Action Lawsuit Seeking Medical and Mental Health Services After Family Separation
The government agreed to dropped its appeal of an order that required the government to provide mental health treatment for migrant parents whose children were separated from them at the border. (Ms. J.P., et al., v. Barr, 2/21/20)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Chinese Petitioner Who Was Detained and Beaten by Police for Reading a Bible at Work
The court affirmed the BIA’s decision upholding the IJ’s denial of asylum, concluding that petitioner—a citizen of China who was detained for 23 hours, interrogated, and beaten by the police after being caught reading a Bible at work—did not suffer past persecution. (Gao v. Barr, 2/20/20)
DOJ’s Immigration Court Practice Manual (Updated on 2/20/20)
The Office of the Chief Immigration Judge updated its Immigration Court Practice Manual, a comprehensive guide on uniform procedures, recommendations, and requirements for practice before immigration courts.
Board of Immigration Appeals Practice Manual (2/20/20)
The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) provided an updated Practice Manual (last revised on February 20, 2020). This manual describes procedures, requirements, and recommendations for practice before the BIA.
BIA Holds Florida Aggravated Battery Does Not Require Use of Force
Unpublished BIA decision holds that aggravated battery under Fla. Stat. 784.045(b) does not require the use of force because it encompasses simple battery against a pregnant victim. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Campbell, 2/19/20)
AILA Submits Amicus Brief on Whether Detention Becomes Unreasonable After One Year
AILA submitted an amicus brief in Reid v. Donelan urging the First Circuit to find that detention without an individualized reasonableness hearing pursuant to Section 1226(c) that lasts any more than six months is presumptively unconstitutional.
Resources on Lawsuit Challenging Conditions in CBP Holding Cells
A U.S. district judge ordered CBP to overhaul the way it detains people in custody in the Tucson Sector, finding that conditions in CBP holding cells, especially those that preclude sleep over several nights, are presumptively punitive and violate the Constitution. (Doe v. Wolf, 2/19/20)
AILA Urges the Ninth Circuit to Affirm the Panel Decision and Reject Matter of Mendoza-Hernandez
AILA submitted an amicus brief to the Ninth Circuit in Lopez v. Barr, arguing that the court should reject the BIA’s decision in Matter of Mendoza-Hernandez affirming that the two-step process triggers the stop-time rule conflicts.
BIA Rescinds In Absentia Order Where Paralegal Miscalendared Hearing Date
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order due to exceptional circumstances because the attorney’s paralegal miscalendared the scheduled hearing date. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Guillen Rosa, 2/18/20)
DHS OIG Finds ICE’s Criminal Alien Program Faces Challenges
DHS OIG released a report noting challenges faced by ICE’s Criminal Alien Program (CAP) due to uncooperative jurisdictions. The report identifies opportunities to streamline CAP processes and notes that ICE inconsistently tracked cases of LPRs charged with crimes or documented CAP-related actions.
Advocates Call on Congress to Establish an Independent Immigration Court
On 2/18/20, 54 immigration, civil rights, faith-based, government accountability, and labor organizations, including AILA, call on Congress to establish an immigration court system that is independent of DOJ so that it can guarantee due process and a fair hearing for immigrants.
Motel 6 Agrees to Pay $10 Million in Revised Settlement for Sharing Guest Data with ICE
A federal judge granted a joint motion for final approval of a $10 million settlement in national class-action litigation on behalf of guests who stayed at a Motel 6 and whose personal information was provided by employees to ICE agents. (Jane V. et al. v. Motel 6 Operating L.P., 2/18/20)
CA1 Concludes “Recalendar” Means to Reinstate Case to Active Docket in Same Posture It Occupied Before Administrative Closure
Interpreting the word “recalendar” according to its plain meaning, the court held that the BIA acted appropriately in placing the petitioner’s case back on its docket and in proceeding from where it left off before the case was administratively closed. (Arevalo v. Barr, 2/14/20)
CA11 Remands Asylum Claim of Homosexual Muslim from Guinea Based on Ineffective Assistance of Counsel
Granting the petition for review and remanding, the court concluded that the petitioner, a homosexual Muslim from Guinea, had established deficient performance by his counsel and had shown that his counsel’s deficiencies had prejudiced his case. (Sow v. Att’y Gen., 2/14/20)
The U.S. Resumes Returning Mexican Nationals to the Interior of Mexico
CBP reported that the number of individuals returned deep into the interior of Mexico under the Interior Repatriation Initiative (IRI) has surpassed 1,000 Mexicans.
BIA Holds Texas Weapon Statute Not a Firearms Offense
Unpublished BIA decision holds that carrying a weapon under Tex. Penal Code 46.02(a) is not a firearms offense. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Gomez, 2/14/20)
BIA Holds New York Weapon Statute Not a Firearms Offense
Unpublished BIA decision holds that criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree under N.Y.P.L. 265.03(3) is not a firearms offense because it could apply to loaded antique firearms. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of A-L-O-, 2/13/20)