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
CA9 Says Car Failure Does Not Constitute Exceptional Circumstances Justifying a Motion to Reopen
As a matter of first impression, the court held that a car’s mechanical failure does not alone compel granting a motion to reopen based on exceptional circumstances. (Arredondo v. Lynch, 5/27/16)
CA6 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Petitioner Whose Application Was “Strikingly Similar” to Several Others
The court upheld the IJ’s and BIA’s denials of petitioner’s asylum application, finding that the petitioner failed to adequately explain why his application was strikingly similar to several others, and failed to adequately corroborate his religious persecution claim. (Wang v. Lynch, 5/27/16)
CA1 Says BIA Acted Within Its Discretion in Denying Indian Petitioners’ Motion to Reopen
The court held that the BIA's denial of petitioners’ motion to reopen was not an abuse of discretion, finding that petitioners had failed to show that their removal to India would result in “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” to their 19-year-old daughter. (Pandit v. Lynch, 5/26/16)
GAO Report Found Additional Actions Needed to Strengthen DHS Management of Short-Term Holding Facilities
GAO report recommending that DHS establish a process to assess time in custody data; issue guidance on complaint mechanisms; include a classification code in all complaint tracking systems related to DHS holding facilities; and develop a process for analyzing complaint trends.
AILA Talking Points on Family Detention
AILA members can use these Talking Points with media when asked about family detention, AILA’s efforts to end family detention, and the CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project.
Federal Government Steps Up Efforts to Deport Central American Mothers and Children without Due Process
In this statement, CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project Managing Attorney Katie Shepherd highlights one of the 16 families picked up by ICE in recent arrests and slated for removal; sadly this family was deported before having had a meaningful chance to make claims for protection.
BIA Rescinds In Absentia Order Against Respondent Who Lost Hearing Notice
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order sua sponte against respondent who lost her hearing notice and misremembered the date of her hearing. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Taunaholo, 5/25/16)
CA5 Upholds Denial of Motion to Reopen Proceedings Based on Changed Country Conditions in Guatemala
The court upheld BIA’s denial of the motion to reopen, holding that BIA did not abuse its discretion in finding that petitioner did not present material evidence of changed country conditions in Guatemala that was unavailable at the time of her removal hearing. (Ramos-Lopez v. Lynch, 5/24/16)
CA5 Finds IIRAIRA’s “Aggravated Felony” Definition Applies Retroactively to Preclude Relief Under §212(c)
The court held that BIA did not err in finding petitioner, who pleaded guilty in December 1996 to transporting an alien within the United States, ineligible for INA §212(c) relief, because IIRAIRA §321(a)’s “aggravated felony” definition applies retroactively. (Limonteco v. Lynch, 5/24/16)
CA2 Finds Peralta-Taveras Survives Vartelas to Preclude Petitioner from Cancellation of Removal
The court held that the Supreme Court’s decision in Vartelas v. Holder did not cast doubt on the court’s decision in Peralta-Taveras v. Att’y Gen., which precludes petitioner, who had been convicted of aggravated felonies, from INA §240A relief. (Nuñez Peña v. Lynch, 5/20/16)
BIA Finds Prior Attorney Provided Ineffective Assistance By Failing to Timely File Form EOIR-42A
Unpublished BIA decision finds the respondent’s prior attorney provided ineffective assistance by failing to file the application necessary to seek cancellation of removal by the court-ordered deadline. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Aminzadem, 5/20/16)
BIA Vacates Marriage Fraud Finding Against Respondent with Approved Visa Petition
Unpublished BIA decision holds that the IJ erroneously found the respondent to be ineligible to adjust status under INA §204(c) where USCIS had already granted the visa petition. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Malaviya, 5/20/16)
BIA Says Plea Colloquy Trumps Conflicting Information in Minute Order
Unpublished BIA decision finds that respondent was convicted under Cal. Penal Code §288(a), not Cal. Penal Code §288a, stating that transcript of plea colloquy trumped conflicting references in minute order and abstract of judgment. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Suarez-Cortes, 5/20/16)
District Court Grants Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus and Orders Bond Hearing for Detainee
The court found that petitioner’s prolonged and continued detention (for more than three years and two months) without a bond hearing had become unreasonable under INA §236(c), and ordered that the petitioner receive a bond hearing within 30 days. (Chairez-Castrejon v. Bible, et al., 5/19/16)
Supreme Court Says State Offense Need Not Have Link to Interstate Commerce to Be Aggravated Felony
The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the denial of cancellation of removal, holding that a state offense counts as an aggravated felony under INA §101(a)(43) even if it does not contain a link to interstate commerce. (Luna Torres v. Lynch, 5/19/16)
AILA Quicktake #167: Prepping for the Impact of ICE Raids
AILA General Counsel Laura Lichter shares information on what AILA members need to know about how they can help women and unaccompanied children who may be subject to raids and what resources are available.
Mothers and Children Detained in Violation of Court Order Plead for Freedom
Pleading for an end to their imprisonment, 69 mothers who have been detained with their children at the South Texas Family Residential Center, an immigration detention facility in Dilley, Texas, wrote a public letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
TRAC Report Finds Texas Immigration Court Leads U.S. in Issuing Removal Orders
A TRAC report found that Immigration Court judges issued 44,204 removal orders as of April 2016. Texas leads the nation with 10,102 removal orders issued, followed by California and Georgia. During April 2016, 1,186 of the 6,347 individuals ordered removed were women with children.
BIA Says Arizona Felony Conviction for Solicitation to Possess Marijuana for Sale Is a CIMT
The BIA held that, within the jurisdiction of the Ninth Circuit, a returning LPR who has a felony conviction for solicitation to possess marijuana for sale is an arriving alien who is inadmissible under INA §212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I). Matter of Gonzalez Romo, 26 I&N Dec. 743 (BIA 2016)
ICE FAQs on Agreement Between USCIS and ICE on Fingerprint Check Refresh Requests
ICE FAQs on the USCIS/ICE agreement establishing a process to refresh fingerprint checks on non-detained respondents with cases pending before EOIR whose fingerprints have been taken, but the fingerprint checks will expire prior to a final decision by EOIR. Agreement is effective as of 3/31/16.
BIA Reopens Proceedings Sua Sponte for UAC Who Failed to Appear at His Removal Hearing
Unpublished BIA decision grants a motion to rescind an in absentia removal order and reopen removal proceedings for a UAC who failed to attend his removal proceedings, finding that the respondent had presented an exceptional situation to warrant sua sponte reopening. Courtesy of Douglas Thie.
CA4 Finds IJs Are Not Required to Warn of Consequences of Filing a Frivolous Asylum Application
The court held that the warning set forth in the I-589 asylum application regarding the consequences of filing a frivolous asylum application satisfies INA §208(d)(4)(A)’s requirement that the applicant must be notified of such consequences. (Ndibu v. Lynch, 5/19/16)
CA9 Issues Superseding Opinion in Yang v. Lynch
In a superseding opinion, the court made several amendments to its original decision, clarifying that, on a motion to reopen, the BIA cannot make the kind of credibility determination inherent in a decision to apply the falsus maxim. (Yang v. Lynch, 5/19/16)
AILA Member Talking Points on the ICE Raids Targeting Central American Families
AILA members can use these Talking Points with media when asked about ICE raids targeting Central American families.
Letter to ICE from 69 Mothers Detained in Dilley Pleading for Freedom
Pleading for an end to their imprisonment, 69 mothers who have been detained with their children at the South Texas Family Residential Center, an immigration detention facility in Dilley, Texas, wrote a public letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement; letter is available in Spanish and English.