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
ABA Report on Family Detention
The ABA released a report titled, “Family Immigration Detention: Why the Past Cannot Be Prologue,” that recommends that the government undertake several key reforms including immediately releasing families held at the Berks, Dilley, and Karnes family detention facilities.
Senators Leahy and Murray Call on DHS to End Family Detention
A 7/31/15 letter from Senators Leahy (D-VT) and Murray (D-WA) to Secretary Johnson, calling DHS to comply with U.S. District Court Judge decision and “release the children and their mothers without delay” from the Karnes and Dilley detention centers.
178 House Members Call on DHS to End Family Detention
A 7/31/15 letter from 178 House members to Secretary Johnson, calling on DHS to end family detention, stating “it is long past time to end family detention.”
CA1 Upholds BIA Where Petitioner Failed to Show Changed Conditions in China
The court held that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying the Chinese citizen petitioner's motion to reopen, holding that petitioner failed to demonstrate that conditions had worsened for Christians in China since the time of his earlier removal proceedings. (Wang v. Lynch, 7/31/15)
CA8 Finds Substantial Evidence in Record to Support Prior Canadian Conviction
The court held that substantial evidence in the record, including the Information and Trial Disposition, coupled with other documents, supported the IJ’s conclusion that petitioner had a Canadian conviction for possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking. (Fraser v. Lynch, 7/31/15)
Deplorable Medical Treatment at Family Detention Centers
A complaint was submitted to the DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties and the Office of Inspector General on behalf of ten detained mothers by the American Immigration Council, AILA, CLINIC, Immigrant Justice Corps, RAICES, and the Women’s Refugee Commission.
Public Version of Complaint to CRCL
Public version of CRCL complaint with ten individual case summaries documenting ICE’s failure to provide adequate medical care to mothers and children in family detention facilities.
Summaries of the 10 Individual Cases
Ten individual case summaries documenting ICE’s failure to provide adequate medical care to mothers and children in family detention facilities.
Press Release: Deplorable Medical Treatment at Family Detention Centers
Press release from AILA and five other organizations announcing the lodging of complaints by mothers with DHS Offices for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties and Inspector General regarding the deplorable medical care they and their children received while detained by DHS.
BIA Reverses Denial of Joint Motion to Administratively Close Proceedings
Unpublished BIA decision grants interlocutory appeal and reverses decision denying joint motion to administratively close proceedings, stating that IJ failed to consider circumstances of case or agreement of the parties. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Parada, 7/30/15)
CA1 Upholds Asylum Denial for Petitioner Who Fled Guatemala During Civil War
The court upheld BIA's denial of petitioner's asylum claims, finding that petitioner failed to establish he reasonably feared future persecution based on his membership in a particular social group, which he defined as "members opposed to gang membership." (Paiz-Morales v. Lynch, 7/29/15)
DHS Announces Establishment of ICE Advisory Committee on Family Residential Centers
DHS announces the establishment of the ICE Advisory Committee on Family Residential Centers (ACFRC) and invites the public to nominate individuals for one-year, two-year, and three-year term appointments. Nominations must be submitted by 8/1/15. (80 FR 45227, 7/29/15)
Backgrounder on New Developments in the Flores Litigation
A backgrounder answering basic questions about Judge Gee’s July 24 ruling that the Administration’s family detention policies do not comply with the Flores Settlement Agreement.
DHS CRCL FY2014 Annual Report to Congress
DHS CRCL FY2014 Annual Report to Congress detailing CRCL’s priorities and activities in FY2014, including implementing confidentiality provisions in accordance with the VAWA 2013 Reauthorization Act, responding to UAC border crossings, conducting investigations at detention facilities, and more.
Practice Alert: USCIS Taking Extreme Measures to Retrieve Erroneously Issued 3-Year DACA EAD
In response to the injunction in Texas v. United States, USCIS is requiring individuals with 3-year EADs that were issued after the injunction to return their EADs to USCIS.
Letter to ICE Director Saldaña Regarding Recent Release Practices at Dilley and Karnes
A 7/27/15 letter from CARA Pro Bono Project to ICE Director Saldaña regarding the coercion and confusion surrounding recent releases from Dilley and Karnes, and the lack of information provided to families before they leave the facility and recent ICE actions undermining the right to counsel.
Incarcerated Children and Mothers Denied Due Process and Critical Information Before Release
The CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project called Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to account for the cascade of due process violations and detrimental practices at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, and at the Karnes County Residential Center in Karnes City, Texas.
AILA Quicktake #133: Flores v. Johnson Ruling
U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee ruled in Flores v. Johnson—a decision that should signal the end of the mass incarceration of children and mothers seeking asylum in the U.S. In this Quicktake, AILA Executive Director Crystal Williams explains the decision and discusses what is coming next.
USCIS Alert: Some DACA Recipients Who Received Three-Year EADs Must Return Them Immediately
USCIS alert announcing that the three-year DACA EAD recall only applies to some individuals who received a card after 2/16/15. Alert outlines who is impacted and steps that should be taken if the EAD needs to be returned. USCIS will terminate DACA if impacted cards are not returned by 7/31/15.
Judge Stands Up for Refugee Families, Castigates Government for Policies that Traumatize Children
The American Immigration Lawyers Association and the American Immigration Council welcomed a ruling in Flores v. Johnson by U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee that should signal the end of the mass incarceration of children and mothers seeking asylum in the U.S.
USCIS Quick Facts on Three-Year EADS Issues Post Injunction
USCIS provides information for DACA recipients who received three-year EADS post-injunction, including information on who is affected, failure to return the EAD, where to return the EAD, duplicate notification, and home visits.
BIA Finds NTA Did Not Terminate Continuous Physical Presence
The BIA held that a notice to appear (NTA) that was served but never resulted in removal proceedings does not have "stop-time" effect for purposes of establishing eligibility for cancellation of removal pursuant to section 240A(d)(1) of the INA. Matter of Ordaz, 26 I&N Dec. 637 (BIA 2015)
District Court Finds DHS in Breach of Flores Agreement
District Court Judge finds DHS in breach of the Flores agreement and grants plaintiffs’ motion to enforce. DHS has until 8/3/15 to file a response, and plaintiffs have until 8/10/15 to file a response, after that the matter will stand as submitted. (Flores v. Johnson, 7/24/15)
BIA Holds North Carolina Paraphernalia Statute Not a Controlled Substance Offense
Unpublished BIA decision terminates proceedings under Mellouli v. Lynch, 135 S. Ct. 1980 (2015), against respondent convicted of possession with intent to use drug paraphernalia under N.C.G.S. 90-113.22. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Morris, 7/23/15)
A Humane Approach Can Work: The Effectiveness of Alternatives to Detention for Asylum Seekers
This American Immigration Council report reviews emerging research on the release of asylum seekers from detention, including the impact of various forms of alternatives to detention, and summarizes the primary harms caused by immigration detention.