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
Sign-On Letter to the White House Urging for PREA to Cover Immigration Detention Facilities
On 4/2/12, AILA joined immigration, labor, faith-based, community, and victim advocacy organizations in a sign-on letter to the White House urging for the implementation of the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA) in immigration detention facilities.
EOIR Swears in New Assistant Chief Immigration Judge
EOIR press release announcing that Attorney General Eric Holder appointed Christopher A. Santoro as a new assistant chief immigration judge during a swearing-in ceremony on 3/30/12.
Immigration Law Advisor, March 2012 (Vol. 6, No. 3)
Immigration Law Advisor, a legal publication from EOIR, with an article on the current framework for establishing the fact of conviction in light of Matter of J.R. Velasquez, as well as circuit court decisions for February 2012, and recent BIA precedent decisions.
BIA Remands Egyptian Asylum Case
In an unpublished decision, the Board reversed a decision denying asylum, noting that a persecutor “may have several reasons for harming a victim and proving the exact reason for the past or feared persecution may be impossible in some cases." Courtesy of David Cleveland.
CA1 Finds No Changed Country Conditions in Chinese Asylum Case
The court affirmed the BIA’s conclusion that reopening of the Chinese petitioner’s asylum case was unwarranted due to his failure to establish a change in circumstances or country conditions. (Chen v. Holder, 3/30/12)
AILA CBP Liaison Report (3/29/12)
AILA CBP liaison report from a meeting with CBP on 3/29/12. Topics include FOIA, I-94 elimination, L-1s, Blanket Ls, automatic visa revalidation, ESTA, TNs, WHTI, ULP, NTAs, H-1B portability, B-2s, and more. Supplemental notes from subsequent teleconferences also included.
USCIS Q&As from AILA Meeting (3/29/12)
USCIS Q&As from its 3/29/12 meeting with AILA Liaison. Topics include preponderance of evidence standard, entrepreneurs and small businesses, EAD and the asylum clock, AAO, customer service, lockbox issues, and more.
CA4 on 212(h) Waiver Eligibility
The court found that an individual who adjusts to LPR status after entering the U.S. can seek a 212(h) waiver, reversing the BIA’s finding that a post-entry adjustment of status constituted an “admission” to the U.S. (Bracamontes v. Holder, 3/29/12).
AILA's New Members Division Newsletter, March 2012 (Vol. 4, Issue 3)
In this issue, learn how prosecutorial discretion and the DREAM Act worked in one client’s favor, tips on processing E-2 visas and filing waivers for beginners, how AILA resources can bolster your research, and much more!
AILA/EOIR Liaison Meeting Q&As (3/29/12)
Official questions and answers from an AILA EOIR Liaison Committee meeting with the EOIR on 3/29/12. Topics include rulemaking updates, prosecutorial discretion, the practice manual, laptops in the courtroom, subpoenas, telephonic testimony, limited appearances, and more.
House Judiciary’s Immigration Subcommittee Hearing on ICE’s National Detention Standards
Testimony from the 3/28/12 House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement Hearing on ICE’s performance-based national detention standards.
AILA Testimony on ICE’s New Detention Standards Submitted to House Immigration Subcommittee
AILA testimony submitted to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement for the 3/28/12 hearing on DHS’s new immigration detention standards.
CIS Ombudsman’s Office Recap of ICE Public Advocate Teleconference
CIS Ombudsman’s Office recap from 3/28/12 teleconference with ICE public advocate Andrew Lorenzen-Strait. Topics included pro se applicants, detention issues for families and parental rights, LGBT rights, and prosecutorial discretion issues.
AILA Denounces House Hearing; Immigration Detention is No "Holiday"
AILA is troubled by the premise of the House Subcommittee on Immigration's hearing entitled "Holiday on ICE." The immigration detention system is plagued with problems, yet this hearing implies that immigrant detention is a vacation.
Supreme Court Holds INA §101(a)(13)(c)(v) Does Not Apply Retroactively
The Court held that the impact of petitioner’s brief travel abroad on his legal permanent resident status is determined not by IIRIRA, but by the legal regime in force at the time of his conviction. (Vartelas v. Holder, 3/28/12)
DHS OIG Report on Communication Regarding Participation in Secure Communities
March 2012 DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) report addressing how the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) communicated the intent and requirements for participation in Secure Communities to states and local jurisdictions.
AILA Fact Sheet on Detention Funding in the 2012 Congress
2012 National Day of Action fact sheet on detention funding in the 2012 Congress.
AILA Fact Sheet on Prosecutorial Discretion
2012 National Day of Action fact sheet on prosecutorial discretion.
CA2 Rejects Matter of H-L-H- & Z-Y-Z-
The court rejected the BIA’s holding in Matter of H-L-H- & Z-Y-Z- to conclude that the IJ’s finding a future event will occur if an applicant is removed is a finding of fact subject to review for clear error. (Huang v. Holder, 3/27/12)
AILA’s Pro Bono Newsletter, Spring 2012
Spring into pro bono action! This edition of AILA’s Pro Bono Newsletter tells you how you can get involved. Read about several pro bono initiatives, including the H.E.L.P. program, a clinic to raise awareness on juvenile removal proceedings, and more!
CA1 Finds NH Reckless Conduct Conviction Is a CIMT
The court found that the petitioner’s reckless conduct convictions were crimes involving moral turpitude, noting that a reckless state of mind can under some circumstances be sufficient to support a finding of moral turpitude. (Idy v. Holder, 3/23/12)
CA7 Upholds Denial of Mexican Petitioner’s Cancellation Application
The court found that the IJ’s behavior did not prevent the petitioner from having a reasonable opportunity to present his case, nor was the petitioner prejudiced by the exclusion of testimony that he argued was inappropriately excluded. (Delgado v. Holder, 3/22/12)
CA9 on 212(c) Relief and Retroactivity
The court found that individuals convicted of a CIMT prior to the enactment of IIRIRA remain eligible for § 212(c) relief, regardless of whether they pleaded guilty or proceeded to trial. (Peng v. Holder, 3/22/12)
AILA/USCIS Field Operations Liaison Q&As (3/21/12) (Updated 5/18/12)
USCIS Field Operations official Q&As from a meeting with AILA on 3/21/12. Topics include K-1 AOS after Matter of Sesay, FDNS site visits, I-551 stamps on I-829s, communication with field offices, I-130 interviews, 11/7/11 NTA memo, organizational charts, and more.
AILA/CBP Liaison Muster Index (Updated 3/19/12)
AILA/CBP liaison offers an index of musters issued by CBP to the field. Topics include inspection procedures, secondary, detention conditions & policy, WHTI, US-VISIT, biometrics, TWIC, C-1/Ds, Ls, consular issues, APIS, LPRs, Global Entry, travel documents, and more.