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
EOIR Resources on its Fraud and Abuse Prevention Programs
EOIR webpage with resources on its Fraud and Abuse Prevention Program (Fraud Program), which is a centralized place to make complaints about issues of fraud, immigration scams, and the unauthorized practice of immigration law.
EOIR Virtual Law Library
EOIR Virtual Law Library provides Board precedents and related court documents, including the Board citation, Board holding, and Court response. Page is updated on an ongoing basis.
BIA Reverses Decision Granting DHS Motion to Change Venue
Unpublished BIA decision grants interlocutory appeal and vacates change of venue requested by DHS because IJ did not acknowledge respondent’s opposition or cite any reasons in his decision. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Guevara Carrillo, 5/17/19)
CA8 Finds BIA Provided Rational Explanation for Denial of Somali Petitioner's Motion to Reopen
The court held that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying the Somali petitioner’s motion to reopen, finding that the BIA gave a rational explanation for its decision, and that it need not list every possible argument for and against its decision. (Ali v. Barr, 5/17/19)
Press Call: Representative Cárdenas and Immigration Policy Experts Discuss the Politicization of Immigration Courts
On May 17, 2019, Representative Cárdenas (D-CA) joined policy experts from AILA, as well as Professor Ingrid Eagly and retired Immigration Judge Jeff Chase on a press call to discuss the current state of our nation’s immigration system.
CA4 Finds DHS’s Rescission of DACA Violated the APA
The court reversed in part the district court and remanded, holding that the government’s decision to rescind the DACA policy violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), because it was not adequately explained and thus was arbitrary and capricious. (Casa de Maryland v. DHS, 5/17/19)
CA5 Holds IIRAIRA Is Not Impermissibly Retroactive as Applied to Petitioner
The court held that the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA) was not impermissibly retroactive as applied to the petitioner, because no adjustment application was pending at the time of the reinstatement order. (Terrazas-Hernandez v. Barr, 5/16/19)
Fifty-Five Members of Congress Call on DOJ to Reverse the Matter of M-S- Decision
On 5/15/19, Representatives Tony Cárdenas (D-CA) and Darren Soto (D-FL) and 55 colleagues sent a letter to DOJ urging it to reverse Matter of M-S- which would make people apprehended between ports with credible fear determinations ineligible for bond hearings in front of an IJ.
BIA Equitably Tolls Deadline for Motion to Reopen Filed with Diligence After Dimaya
Unpublished BIA decision equitably tolls deadline for respondent ordered removed in 2001 where motion to reopen was filed with diligence after Supreme Court decision finding 18 U.S.C. 16(b) unconstitutionally vague. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Aguilar Elias, 5/15/19)
AILA Policy Brief: Facts About the State of Our Nation’s Immigration Courts
AILA issued a policy brief in response to EOIR’s Myths vs. Fact memo that was disseminated on May 8, 2019. AILA explains that EOIR’s skewed portrayal only demonstrates the urgent need for Congress to create an independent court, separate from DOJ.
Retired IJs and Former Members of the BIA Object to EOIR’s Dissemination of Misinformation
On May 13, 2019, retired IJs and former members of the BIA submitted a letter to EOIR Director McHenry in response to EOIR’s Myths vs. Fact memo issued on May 8, 2019. The letter characterizes EOIR’s memo as “political pandering.”
Association of Immigration Judges Says DOJ’s “Myths v. Facts” Fact Sheet Filled with Errors and Misinformation
On May 13, 2019, the National Association of Immigration Judges (NAIJ) responded to EOIR’s Myths vs. Fact memo issued on May 8, 2019. Their response outlines key assertions made in the EOIR memo that “mischaracterize or misrepresent the facts.”
CA2 Says Second-Degree Assault Conviction in New York Is an Aggravated Felony Crime of Violence
The court denied the petition for review, finding that the petitioner’s conviction for second-degree assault in violation of New York Penal Law §120.05(1) was an aggravated felony crime of violence under INA §101(a)(43)(F) and 18 USC §16. (Thomson v. Barr, 5/13/19)
BIA Terminates Proceedings Due to Lack of Affirmative DHS Opposition
Unpublished BIA decision terminates proceedings so respondent can pursue an adjustment of status application before USCIS in light of DHS’s lack of affirmative opposition. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Abreha, 5/13/19)
BIA Reopens Proceedings Sua Sponte Under Dimaya for Deported Respondent
Unpublished BIA decision reopens and terminates proceedings sua sponte in light of Supreme Court decision finding 18 U.S.C. 16(b) unconstitutionally vague and notwithstanding respondent’s lawful removal to Mexico in the interim. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Navarro, 5/13/19)
BIA Holds Burning of Meeting House in Massachusetts Not a CIMT
Unpublished BIA decision holds that burning of a meeting house under Mass. Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 266 § 2 is not a CIMT because it applies to the owner setting fire to their own property. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Rosa Pena, 5/10/19)
CA9 Finds California Felony Conviction Reclassified as a Misdemeanor Retains Its Immigration Consequences
The court found that the petitioner’s felony conviction for possession of marijuana for sale in California rendered the petitioner removable, even though the conviction had been recalled and reclassified as a misdemeanor under California’s Proposition 64. (Prado v. Barr, 5/10/19)
CRS Releases Legal Sidebar on Matter of M-S-
CRS released a Legal Sidebar on the statutes and regulations governing expedited removal and the detention of individuals placed in formal removal proceedings, including how the AG’s ruling in Matter of M-S- modified immigration authorities’ prior interpretation of these legal authorities.
CA2 Finds Conspiracy in the Second Degree in New York Is an Aggravated Felony
The court denied the petition for review, finding that the petitioner’s conviction for conspiracy in the second degree to commit a felony—namely, murder in the second degree—under New York law constitutes an aggravated felony. (Santana-Felix v. Barr, 5/9/19)
CA7 Says It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Prior Removal Order in Reinstatement Proceedings
The court dismissed the petition for review, holding that, under the plain language of 8 USC §1231(a)(5), it lacked jurisdiction to review the petitioner’s underlying 2005 removal order in the context of his reinstatement proceedings. (Villa v. Barr, 5/9/19)
AILA Update: Feeing in a Motion with EOIR at a Local USCIS Office
AILA provides results from the recent call for examples survey concerning feeing in a motion with EOIR at local USCIS field offices, as well as updates on subsequent actions taken with both USCIS and the CIS Ombudsman’s office.
CRS Report on “Migrant Protection Protocols”: Legal Issues Related to DHS’s Plan to Require Arriving Asylum Seekers to Wait in Mexico
CRS provided an updated analysis of the Migrant Protection Protocol, discussing recent litigation, the rollout of the policy, expedited removal, statutory authority for the policy, and other legal issues.
NARA Notice of Records Schedules Including USCIS Records on Notices to Appear
National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) notice and request for comments with proposed records schedules from agencies in which the agencies propose to dispose of certain records. This notice includes a USCIS records schedule relating to Notices to Appear. (84 FR 20166, 5/8/19)
EOIR Releases “Myths vs. Facts About Immigration Proceedings”
EOIR released a purposed “Myths vs. Facts About Immigration Proceedings” factsheet.
Immigration Judge Grants Motion to Reopen In Absentia Order of Removal
Immigration Judge finds that if a party does not receive Notice of Hearing and is removed in absentia, said party may re-open proceedings to hear the case on its merits. The court relied on lack of evidence produced by the government in coming to its conclusion. Courtesy of Roopal Patel.