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 Upholds Grant of Motion to Suppress
Unpublished BIA decision upholds decision granting motion to suppress and terminating proceedings where ICE officers entered the respondent’s apartment without a warrant or consent. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Cabrera, 3/15/18)
AILA Quicktake #238: Cogs in the Deportation Machine
AILA's Kate Voigt previews AILA's new report, Cogs in the Deportation Machine, which surveys policy changes to immigration enforcement made by the Trump administration.
BIA Finds Adjudicators May Look to Multiple Provisions of the CSA to Determine if an Offense Is an Aggravated Felony Under INA §101(a)(43)(B)
The BIA held that in deciding whether a state offense is an aggravated felony under INA §101(a)(43)(B), adjudicators need not look solely to the provision of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) most similar to the state statute of conviction. Matter of Rosa, 27 I&N Dec. 228 (BIA 2018)
AILA Report “Cogs in the Deportation Machine” Shows Massive Escalation of Immigration Enforcement
AILA released a new report detailing how the Trump administration has systematically increased enforcement, using harsh, indiscriminate methods to deport thousands of families, asylum seekers, and people who have lived and worked for years in the United States.
CA7 Finds Mexican Petitioner Did Not Meet Burden to Establish Eligibility for Withholding of Removal or CAT Relief
The court denied the petition for review, finding that the petitioner did not meet his burden in establishing that he would be subject to future persecution or torture, and that he was thus not entitled to withholding of removal or relief under the CAT. (Cruz-Martinez v. Sessions, 3/14/18)
The Deportation Machine Destroys Lives
Kate Voigt, chief editor of AILA's new report, Cogs in the Deportation Machine, highlights how “the administration has gone to great lengths to deport as many people as possible, as quickly as possible, with little regard for the financial cost or the impact upon American communities.“
Tri-Caucus Letter Urges Congressional Leaders to Reject Increased Funding for Deportation
On 3/13/18, Chairs of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, and the Congressional Black Caucus signed a letter urging the House and Senate Leaders to reject funding increases for Trump’s mass deportation agenda in the 2018 omnibus appropriations bill.
Practice Pointer: Matter of W-Y-C & H-O-B and Articulating Particular Social Groups Before the IJ
AILA’s Asylum and Refugee Committee provides a practice pointer addressing the January 2018 BIA precedential decision in Matter of W-Y-C- & H-O-B and its potential effects on how practitioners should prepare particular social group-based asylum claims.
CA2 Finds Failure to Inform Defendant of Immigration Consequences of Guilty Plea Was Not Harmless Error
The court held that the district court’s failure to inform the defendant of the potential immigration consequences of his guilty plea was not harmless error. The court vacated the judgment of the district court and remanded. (U.S. v. Gonzales, 3/13/18)
H.Res. 774: “Queen-of-the-Hill” Resolution on Dreamers
On 3/13/18, Representative Jeff Denham (R-CA) introduced H.Res.774 with 17 original Republican cosponsors. The resolution would require the U.S. House of Representatives to consider four bills under a “Queen of the Hill” rule to address Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients.
BIA Finds Theft of Department of Treasury Funds Not a CIMT
Unpublished BIA decision holds that theft of Department of Treasury funds under 18 USC §641 is not a CIMT because it does not require either an intent to permanently deprive the owner of property or to defraud. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Husti, 3/13/18)
CA11 Finds That Petitioner’s Florida Cocaine Trafficking Conviction Was Not an Aggravated Felony
Relying on its recent decision in Cintron v. Attorney General, the court held that the petitioner’s conviction for trafficking in cocaine under Fla. Stat. §893.135(1)(b)1.c was not an aggravated felony and remanded the case to the BIA. (Ulloa Francisco v. Attorney General, 3/12/18)
Law Student Perspective: The Somali 92
AILA Law Student members Mary Georgevich and Alexis Dutt share their experiences working with detained Somali refugees in Florida.
CA9 Finds Requirement to Accept Asylum Petitioner’s Testimony as True Where IJ and BIA Did Not Make Adverse Credibility Determination
The court granted the petition for review of the denial of asylum and withholding of removal, finding that because neither the IJ nor the BIA made an explicit adverse credibility determination, the court was required to accept the petitioner’s testimony as true. (Dai v. Sessions, 3/8/18)
CA2 Holds That BIA Erred by Retroactively Applying Matter of Diaz-Lizarraga
The court held that the BIA erred by retroactively applying the standard announced in Matter of Diaz-Lizarraga for larceny crimes involving moral turpitude to the petitioner’s case and remanded the case to the BIA. (Obeya v. Sessions, 3/8/18)
CA7 Finds Lack of Jurisdiction to Review Whether Petitioner Waived Her Appeal Rights
The court dismissed the petition for review, finding that it lacked jurisdiction to review the question of whether the petitioner had waived her appeal rights. (Melesio-Rodriguez v. Sessions, 3/7/18)
The End of Immigration Enforcement Priorities Under the Trump Administration
The American Immigration Council provides a fact sheet that explains the shift in enforcement philosophy under the Trump administration and outlines the effects of this change. This approach to enforcement diverts the attention of law enforcement agencies from those who are serious public threats.
AG Refers Decision to Himself and Issues Amicus Invitation on “Particular Social Group” and Victims of Private Criminal Activity
The Attorney General referred Matter of A-B- to himself for review of issues relating to whether being a victim of private criminal activity constitutes a cognizable “particular social group” for purposes of an application for asylum and withholding of removal.
Featured Issue: Detainers
Updates and resources related to detainers, including AILA press statements, reports, and testimonies.
DHS States USCIS Is Adjudicating DACA Renewals in Compliance with Court Injunctions
DHS issued a press statement on DACA, stating that in compliance with court injunctions, USCIS is adjudicating requests for DACA renewals as they are submitted but is not accepting requests from individuals not previously granted deferred action under DACA.
Assumption of Risk: Legal Liabilities for Local Governments that Choose to Enforce Federal Immigration Laws
Report by AILA, the Council, NIJC, NILC, and SPLC on ICE detainer requests to local law enforcement agencies, the history and constitutional and legal framework of such detainers, and the non-legal consequences of local law enforcement officers acting as immigration agents.
AILA Quicktake #237: DACA Deadline Passes
AILA's Director of Government Relations Greg Chen shares where things stand with the DACA program now that the March 5 deadline has passed and looks ahead to the spending bill that must be passed by March 23 to fund the government.
Civil Rights Report Describes Legal Liabilities for Local Police that Detain Immigrants for ICE
AILA and four other organizations issued a press release about their new report detailing the illegalities inherent in each of the U.S. government’s attempts to enlist local law enforcement authorities to arrest and detain people on behalf of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
House Republicans Sign Letter in Response to Lawsuits Regarding Voluntary Institutional Work at Detention Center Facilities
On March 7, 2018, 18 House Republicans signed a letter to the DOJ, the DOL, and ICE urging them to participate in pending litigation or issue guidance to oppose the claims of several lawsuits. The lawsuits were filed against Contract Detention Facilities for paying detainees $1 per day for labor.
CRS Report: Explanation and Takeaways on District Court Cases Related to DACA Phase-Out
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) provides a Legal Sidebar with information on the impact of recent litigation related to the DACA phase-out.