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
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Report FY2014
Report summarizing ICE’s FY2014 civil immigration enforcement and removal operations, finding that ICE removed 315,943 individuals in FY2014, down from 368,644 in FY2013, and 85% of ICE’s interior removals and returns were previously convicted of a criminal offense, up from 67% in FY2011.
TRAC Report Finds Removal Orders Rise, But with Wide Variation by Court
TRAC report finding that according to the latest case-by-case records, immigration courts granted 54.8% of removal orders issued during October and November 2014, compared with only 50.7% during FY2014. The rate at which deportation orders were granted varied considerably among individual courts.
USCIS Executive Summary from Teleconference on DACA Renewal Process
USCIS executive summary from the 12/18/14 stakeholder teleconference discussing the DACA renewal process.
Letter to President Obama Opposing Family Detention Facility in Dilley
A 12/18/14 letter from AILA and over 120 other advocacy organizations to President Obama opposing the opening of the new family detention facility in Dilley, Texas.
Supreme Court Order Allows DACA Beneficiaries in Arizona to Obtain Driver’s Licenses (Updated 12/18/14)
The court issued an order denying application for stay requested by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer on Ninth Circuit’s decision blocking Arizona driver’s licenses ban for DACA beneficiaries.
AILA: Administration Turns Its Back on American Values with Mammoth New Family Prison
AILA President Leslie A. Holman expressed outrage over the opening of the Dilley family detention center noting that for families, “Moving from a make-shift prison to one run by the private prison industry brings no more humanity to an inhumane situation.”
BIA Finds IJ Should Have Continued Proceedings After Attorney Withdrawal
Unpublished BIA decision finds the IJ should have given the respondent additional time to secure counsel after his original attorney withdrew at the second master calendar hearing. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Baca-Chavez, 12/16/14)
ACLU Complaint Challenging Obama Administration for Detaining Asylum Seekers as Intimidation Tactic
Nationwide class-action lawsuit filed by the ACLU seeking injunctive and declaratory relief, challenging the Obama Administration’s policy of detaining asylum-seeking mothers and children to intimidate others from coming to the U.S. (R.I.L.R. v. Johnson, 12/16/14)
District Court Says Parts of President Obama’s Immigration Actions Are Unconstitutional
The district court, in considering how to sentence a defendant in a criminal case, held that the President’s executive action on immigration is unconstitutional because it violates the separation of powers and the Take Care Clause in the U.S. Constitution. (U.S. v. Juarez-Escobar, 12/16/14)
CA9 Says BIA Decision Denying Some Claims and Remanding Others Is Not Final
The court held when the BIA issues a decision that denies some claims, but remands any other claims, the BIA decision is not a final order of removal with regard to any of the claims, and it does not trigger the 30-day window to file a petition for review. (Abdisalan v. Holder, 12/15/14)
BIA Reverses Fraud Finding Based on Signature on Adjustment Application
Unpublished BIA decision reverses finding that respondent made material misrepresentation by falsely claiming to have signed Form I-485 because the identity of the signatory was not relevant to his eligibility for relief. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Luwaga, 12/12/14)
BIA Finds Georgia Theft Not an Aggravated Felony
Unpublished BIA decision holds that theft under Ga. Code 16-8-2 is not an aggravated felony theft offense because it does not require a taking without the victim’s consent, and that the statute is not divisible. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Vassell, 12/12/14)
Letter to Director Rodriguez on DACA Renewal Processing Times
A 12/12/14 letter from AILA to USCIS Director León Rodríguez, expressing concern over serious delays in processing renewal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) applications, and asking USCIS to automatically extend work authorization to DACA renewal applicants.
BIA Says Drug Trafficking Conviction Not Categorically an Aggravated Felony
Unpublished BIA decision grants the respondent's motion to reopen and remands for the IJ to reassess whether the respondent's California conviction for the transportation of cocaine was an aggravated felony under the modified categorical approach. Courtesy of Russell Abrutyn.
VOICE: December 2014
In the December 2014 VOICE, learn about the importance of a solid game plan when handling removal cases, one attorney and mother’s path to starting her own practice, tips on pursuing an internship, the benefits of AILA’s liability insurance, and more!
BIA Finds Respondent Has “Absolute Right” to View A-File
Unpublished BIA decision remands record to allow DHS to comply with Dent v. Holder, 627 F.3d 365 (9th Cir. 2010), which it says provides respondents an “absolute right” to view contents of A-file. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Lopez-Lopez, 12/11/14)
BIA Finds Violation of Protective Order Must Relate to Domestic Violence
Unpublished BIA decision orders further consideration of whether respondent is removable under INA 237(a)(2)(E)(ii) because the IJ did not determine whether the protective order he violated was issued to prevent domestic violence. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Umanzor Cabrera, 12/11/14)
DHS OIG Alert on Safety Issues at ICE Facility in San Pedro, CA
DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) management alert on 12/11/14 identifying serious safety issues at the San Pedro, CA Service Processing Center and recommending that the building be vacated immediately until all safety issues are corrected or until ICE determines the facility is safe.
AILA Statement for Senate Judiciary Hearing on Keeping Families Together
AILA statement submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee for the 12/10/14 hearing on " Keeping Families Together: The President’s Executive Action On Immigration And The Need To Pass Comprehensive Reform."
BIA Says Respondent Is Eligible for Withholding on Account of His Political Opinion
Unpublished BIA decision sustaining appeal from withholding denial, finding the violence and intimidation that respondent faced in Belarus, including being convicted and detained for 15 days, and having been kicked and punched by the police, constitute past persecution. Courtesy of Alexander Segal.
BIA on Continuous Physical Presence for Cancellation of Removal
The BIA held an alien’s departure from the U.S. following a criminal conviction for illegal entry under INA §275(a)(1), interrupts 10-year period of continuous physical presence required to establish cancellation under INA §240A(b)(1). Matter of Velasquez-Cruz, 26 I&N, Dec. 445 (BIA 2014)
BIA Finds IJ Should Have Granted Newly Retained Attorney Additional Time to Prepare
Unpublished BIA decision finds the IJ erred in failing to continue proceedings to allow the respondent’s newly retained attorney additional time to review the record and prepare her case. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Moses, 12/9/14)
Do You Have a “Former Gang Member” Case on Appeal to a Circuit Court? Tell the AILA Amicus Committee!
AILA's Amicus Committee seeks asylum/withholding cases currently on appeal to a circuit court, where the BIA has applied its recent precedent, Matter of W-G-R-, 26 I&N Dec. 208 (BIA 2014) and refused to recognize a proposed "particular social group" composed of former gang members.
DHS Fact Sheet on Department of Justice Racial Profiling Guidance
DHS fact sheet on U.S. Department of Justice racial profiling guidance and its application to Department of Homeland Security activities.
Practice Advisory: Preventing Removal of DAPA- or Expanded DACA-Eligible Individuals
The American Immigration Council and the National Immigration Project issued a joint practice advisory that offers strategies to facilitate the release from custody or prevent the removal of individuals who qualify for Expanded DACA or DAPA or are otherwise not enforcement priorities.