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
CA7 Rejects Cancellation of Removal Applicant’s Contention That IJ Improperly Excluded Evidence and Failed to Develop the Record
The court upheld the BIA, finding that, based on the record, the petitioner could not contend that the IJ failed to develop the record by not asking more questions, and that the IJ did not improperly exclude evidence that was central to petitioner’s case. (Perez-Fuentes v. Lynch, 11/22/16)
With the Stroke of a Pen: What Executive Branch Actions Can President-elect Trump “Undo” on Day One?
A Congressional Research Service (CRS) Legal Sidebar that discusses what executive branch actions President-elect Donald Trump can unilaterally and immediately revoke. Report discusses executive orders, discretionary agency directives and guidance documents, and agency rules and regulations.
BIA Finds Virginia Online Solicitation Statute Not Sexual Abuse of a Minor
Unpublished BIA decision finds conviction under Va. Code Ann. 18.2-374.3 does not qualify as “sexual abuse of a minor” because subsections (C) and (E) criminalize the solicitation of adults posing as minors. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of W-K-H-, 11/22/16)
CA1 Rejects Rule Prohibiting Government from Subjecting to Mandatory Detention Class Members Not Detained by DHS Within 48 Hours
The court held that a class-wide, bright line rule prohibiting the government from subjecting to mandatory detention any class member who was not taken into immigration custody within 48 hours of release from non-DHS custody was inconsistent with prior opinions. (Gordon v. Lynch, 11/21/16)
CBP Opens West Texas Facility to Process Border Crossers
CBP announced that in response to an upsurge in border crossers along the Southwest border, it has opened the Tornillo-Guadalupe, Texas, Temporary Holding Facility. The facility, at the CBP Tornillo-Guadalupe Port of Entry, can hold up to 500 people and will be in place for 30 days.
DHS Withdraws Appeals of Order Terminating Proceedings Against Former UNNJ Student
Unpublished BIA decision notes the withdrawal of a DHS appeal challenging a decision terminating proceedings against a former student at the fake University of Northern New Jersey for being present in violation of law. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Kasim Reddy, 11/18/16)
CBP Issues Guidance on the Form I-212 Fee Increase
CBP issued guidance on the fee increase for Form I-212, Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission into the United States After Deportation or Removal, effective 12/23/16.
ICE Provides Final Settlement Information Regarding Telephone Access in Immigration Detention
ICE provided information regarding a final settlement in Lyon, et al. v. ICE, et al. on telephone access for all current and future adult immigration detainees who are or will be held by ICE in Contra Costa County, Kern County, Sacramento County, or Yuba County.
AILA EOIR Stakeholder Meeting Minutes (11/17/16)
Unofficial minutes from the 11/17/16 EOIR stakeholder meeting. Topics include staffing and docket information, consistency in following the Immigration Court Practice Manual, use of technology in the courtroom, priority dockets, and increased security measures.
Highlights from EOIR Stakeholder Meeting (11/17/16)
AILA’s EOIR Liaison committee provides the following updates from the 11/17/16 EOIR stakeholder meeting: use of electronics in EOIR space, consistency in the application of the ICPM, and applications for suspension of deportation/cancellation of removal in non-detained cases.
House Members Urge President Obama to Pardon DREAMers
On 11/17/16, Representatives Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Luis Gutierrez (D-IL), and Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA) urged President Obama to exercise his constitutional authority to provide pardons to DREAMers.
DHS Notice of Homeland Security Advisory Council Meeting
DHS notice that the Homeland Security Advisory Council will meet on 12/1/16 in Washington, D.C. The Council may deliberate on the Privatized Immigration Detention Facilities Subcommittee’s interim report or final recommendations. Comments and registration are due by 11/28/16. (81 FR 80677, 11/16/16)
BIA Says Arizona Conviction for Shoplifting Is a Crime Involving Moral Turpitude
The BIA sustained DHS’s appeal from the IJ’s decision terminating the removal proceedings against the respondent, holding that shoplifting under Arizona Revised Statutes §13-1805(A) is a categorical crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). Matter of Diaz-Lizarraga, 26 I&N Dec. 847 (BIA 2016)
BIA Says New York Conviction for Petit Larceny Is a Crime Involving Moral Turpitude
The BIA held that petit larceny in violation of N.Y.P.L. §155.25, which requires intent to deprive an owner of his property permanently or under circumstances where the owner’s property rights are substantially eroded, is categorically a CIMT. Matter of Obeya, 26 I&N Dec. 856 (BIA 2016)
CA9 Upholds BIA’s Retroactive Application of Supreme Court’s Decision in Holder v. Martinez Gutierrez
The court upheld BIA’s decision retroactively applying to petitioner the holding in Holder v. Martinez Gutierrez that a cancellation of removal applicant must satisfy the years-of-residence requirement on his own, without relying on a parent’s history. (Lemus v. Lynch, 11/16/16)
Migration Policy Institute: Who Might Be a Priority for Removal
The Migration Policy Institute provides a report, “Unauthorized Immigrants with Criminal Convictions: Who Might Be a Priority for Removal,” regarding the number of unauthorized immigrants who could be deported because of criminal records when the Trump administration takes charge.
ACLU Files Suit Challenging Government’s Policy of Setting Immigration Bonds Without Regard to Noncitizens’ Financial Resources
The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California seeking to require the federal government to apply standards similar to those used in criminal cases when it sets bail bonds for immigrants. (Hernandez v. Lynch, 4/6/16)
BIA Rescinds In Absentia Order Due to Mistake By Bond Company in Reporting Address
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order where bond company failed to include respondent’s apartment number when reporting his address to the immigration court. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Aparicio, 11/15/16)
AILA Submits Amicus Brief on Due Process Rights of Immigrant Deportees
The AILA Amicus Committee filed an amicus brief with the Connecticut Supreme Court asking to reverse the decision barring post-conviction motions and appeals in instances where the defendant is removed from the United States. The brief argued the defendant was denied due process based on alienage.
CA5 Upholds Withholding of Removal Denial to Petitioner Who Feared Persecution in Mexico for Perceived Wealth
The court held that persons believed to be wealthy because they are returning to their home country from the United States do not constitute a sufficiently particular social group to support an application for withholding of removal. (Gonzalez-Soto v. Lynch, 11/14/16)
AILA Comments on DHS's Retrospective Review of Existing Regulations
AILA provides comments in response to the request for information on the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) retrospective review of existing regulations pursuant to Executive Order 13563, “Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review,” issued by the President on January 18, 2011.
District Court Orders Government to Reform Immigration Bond Practices in Ruling on ACLU Lawsuit
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued a preliminary injunction ordering the federal government to implement reforms in their system for setting bail bonds to ensure that immigrants are not detained merely based on their poverty. (Hernandez v. Lynch, 11/10/16)
TRAC Releases Asylum Denial Rates for Each Immigration Court Judge
TRAC provides information on asylum denial rates for Immigration Court judges. This report consists of 268 separate reports and includes each Immigration Judge who decided at least 100 asylum cases between FY2011 and FY2016.
BIA Reopens Proceedings Following Grant of TPS
Unpublished BIA decision reopens proceedings for respondent to seek administrative closure or other relief based on grant of TPS. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Euceda-Rueda, 11/10/16)
TRAC Report Demonstrates Immigration Court’s Rising Backlog
This TRAC report finds that during October 2016, the Immigration Court’s backlog rose by 5,645 cases, reaching a total of 521,676. In California, the backlog rose to a total of 95,801 cases as of October 31, 2016, representing the largest backlog among states in the country.