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
Motion for Extension to File Opening Brief – Sixth Circuit
Sample motion to for a 45-day extension to file opening brief for the sixth circuit court of appeals. (Miscellaneous Motion)
CA4 Finds Petitioner’s Virginia Conviction for Possession of Ethylone Rendered Him Removable Under INA §237(a)(2)(B)(i)
The court held that because ethylone is a controlled substance under both Virginia and federal law, there was a categorical match between the comparable elements, and thus found that the petitioner was removable pursuant to INA §237(a)(2)(B)(i). (Bah v. Barr, 2/13/20)
EOIR Issues Policy Memo on Immigration Court Practice Manual and Orders
EOIR issued a policy memo clarifying the relationship between the Immigration Court Practice Manual (ICPM) and certain classes of orders that contradict the ICPM or applicable law, as well as rescinding several outdated Operating Policies and Procedures Memoranda.
EOIR Issues Policy Memo on Definitions and Use of Adjournment, Call-Up, and Case Identification Codes
EOIR issued a policy memo rescinding OPPM 18-02, Definitions and Use of Adjournment, Call-Up, and Case Identification Codes, dated June 8, 2018, and setting forth updated codes to track the case hearing process.
Senators Press Attorney General for Information on the Politicization and Mismanagement of U.S. Immigration Courts
On February 13, 2020, several U.S. senators sent a letter to Attorney General Barr requesting information about the training and hiring of immigration judges and the mismanagement of immigration courts in order to ensure that immigration laws are being interpreted and applied fairly and impartially.
CA3 Holds District Court Can Review Certain “Now-or-Never” Claims Brought by Detained Noncitizens
The court held that when a detained noncitizen seeks relief that a court of appeals cannot meaningfully provide on a petition for review of a final order of removal, INA §§242(a)(4) and (b)(9) do not bar consideration of those claims by a district court. (E.O.H.C. v. DHS, et al., 2/13/20)
AILA Urges House Judiciary Committee to Pass the NO BAN Act and the Access to Counsel Act of 2020
AILA submitted a statement urging the House Judiciary Committee to pass H.R. 2214, NO BAN Act, and H.R. 5581, Access to Counsel Act of 2020. These bills will limit executive authority to restrict the entry of persons into the U.S. and grant access to counsel if a person is detained an hour or more.
CA8 Finds Family Membership Was Not a Central Reason for Persecution Feared by Guatemalan Petitioner
Upholding the BIA’s denial of withholding of removal, the court concluded that there was substantial evidence to support the BIA’s finding that the petitioner’s family membership was not a central reason for the persecution she feared in Guatemala. (Silvestre-Giron v. Barr, 2/12/20)
BIA Terminates Proceedings Sua Sponte Following Vacatur of Criminal Conviction
Unpublished BIA decision reopens and terminates proceedings sua sponte after the respondent’s criminal conviction was vacated because he had not been advised of the immigration consequences of his guilty plea. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Deltoro-Aguilar, 2/12/20)
CA6 Finds BIA Reasonably Upheld Adverse Credibility Determination as to Argentinian Asylum Seeker
The court concluded that there were at least three valid evidentiary grounds for the BIA’s decision to uphold the IJ’s adverse credibility finding as to the petitioner, a citizen of Argentina who was seeking asylum, and thus denied the petition for review. (Luna-Romero v. Barr, 2/11/20)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief Urging the Sixth Circuit to Reverse the BIA’s Decision to Remove Victim of Violent Crime
AILA and partners submitted a redacted amicus brief to the Sixth Circuit requesting reversal of the BIA’s decision to deny petitioner’s motion to remand her removal proceedings so she could pursue her U visa petition.
An Inside Look – Tips from a Clinical Social Worker Helping Asylum Seekers
Psychological evaluations can be hugely important for vulnerable clients' cases, but attorneys may have some questions about how best to approach having one done. In this blog post, Jocelyn Dyer shares helpful tips from Aimee Miller, a clinical social worker.
IJ Finds First-Degree Felony Murder in Florida in 1995 Is Not a CIMT or Crime of Violence
Conducting a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT) and aggravated felony analysis under the 1995 Florida statutes, the Immigration Judge found, among other things, that first-degree felony murder is not a CIMT or a crime of violence. Courtesy of Patricia Cooper. (Matter of –, 2/10/20)
DOJ Sues King County, Washington, and King County Executive for Prohibiting ICE Contractors From Using King County International Airport
DOJ filed a lawsuit challenging King County Executive Order PFC-7-1-EO, which has the purpose and intended effect of prohibiting ICE contractors from using King County International Airport for flights to transport immigration detainees. (U.S.A. v. King County, et al., 2/10/20)
BIA Holds Misuse of a Social Security Number Not a CIMT
Unpublished BIA decision holds that misuse of a social security number under 42 U.S.C. 408(a)(7)(8) is not a CIMT because seeking to obtain a job and support one’s family is not reprehensible. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of M-E-A-, 2/10/20)
District Court Grants Class-Wide Preliminary Injunction in Case Challenging ICE Arrests at I-130 Interviews
The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland issued a class-wide preliminary injunction prohibiting federal immigration officials from arresting, detaining, or removing noncitizens with final removal orders at I-130 marriage interviews. (Sanchez, et al. v. McAleenan, et al., 2/7/20)
District Court Permanently Enjoins ICE from Relying on Inaccurate Federal Databases to Issue Detainers
A California federal court permanently enjoined ICE from issuing detainers based solely on database searches relying on information from sources lacking sufficient indicia of reliability for a probable cause determination for removal. (Roy, et al. v. County of Los Angeles, et al., 2/5/20)
BIA Holds Pennsylvania Possession with Intent to Deliver Not an Aggravated Felony
Unpublished BIA decision holds that possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance under 35 Pa. Cons. Stat. 780-113(a)(30) is not categorically an aggravated felony. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of G-L-C-, 2/5/20)
ICE Provides Guidance after District Court Judgment in Gonzalez v. ICE
ICE provided guidance on Gonzalez v. ICE, which declared any detainer issued by a ICE officer or agent in the Central District of California to a law enforcement agency for a member of the Probable Cause Subclass to be null and void and ordered ICE to immediately rescind all such detainers.
BIA Equitably Tolls MTR Deadline Due to Ineffective Assistance
Unpublished BIA decision equitably tolls deadline to file motion to reopen where respondent learned of prior attorney’s ineffectiveness in March 2014 and filed motion in July 2014. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Ramirez-Perez, 2/4/20)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief Urging the Supreme Court to Adhere to the Categorical Approach for Convictions Relating to Eligibility for Relie
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief in Pereida v. Barr urging the Supreme Court to adhere to the categorical approach when the record of conviction is ambiguous and cannot demonstrate that the noncitizen was necessarily convicted of a disqualifying offense.
CA9 Declines to Rehear Prado v. Barr En Banc
The court issued an order amending its prior opinion and denying the rehearing en banc of Prado v. Barr, in which the court found that the petitioner’s felony conviction for possession of marijuana for sale in California rendered him removable. (Prado v. Barr, 5/10/19, amended 2/3/20)
GAO Finds That DHS’s Process of Information Collection and Sharing Puts Individuals Who May Be Eligible for Relief at Risk of Removal
GAO found that DHS’s fragmented process of identifying, collecting, and sharing information about certain apprehended family members across its components (CBP, USCIS, ICE) puts individuals at risk of removal who may be eligible for relief or protection based on their family relationship.
BIA Holds Louisiana Statutory Rape Statute Not a CIMT
Unpublished BIA decision holds that carnal knowledge of a juvenile under La. Rev. Stat. Ann. 14:80(A)(2) is not a CIMT because it does not require a sufficiently significant age difference between the victim and perpetrator. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Rosas-Garcia, 1/31/20)
EOIR Releases Policy Memo on Case Management and Docketing Practices
EOIR issued a policy memo reiterating and clarifying EOIR policy regarding certain case management and docketing practices including for detained cases, removal cases, custody redetermination hearings, credible fear/reasonable fear reviews, unscheduled IJ absences, rescheduled cases, and more.