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 Interprets “Has Been” in the Cancellation of Removal Context
For purposes of INA §240A(a) cancellation, the term “has been” lawfully admitted for permanent residence means that the alien must currently possess LPR status. It does not include a person who held that status but has since lost it. (Padilla-Romero v. Holder, 7/9/10)
CA3 Finds IJ Failure to Advise on Free Legal Services Availability Invalidates Removal Order
The court vacated and remanded, holding that the IJ’s failure to advise respondent of the availability of free legal services, as required under 8 CFR §1240.10(a)(2)-(3) rendered the removal order invalid. (Leslie v. Att'y Gen. of the U.S., 7/9/10)
CA3 Finds BIA Ignored Majority of Petitioner’s Evidence in CAT Claim
The court reversed and granted withholding of removal under CAT, finding that the BIA ignored the majority of Petitioner's evidence and held that it is more likely than not that petitioner would be tortured if returned to China. (Kang v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 7/8/10)
CA11 Discusses Post-Conclusion Voluntary Departure
An alien is not precluded from post-conclusion voluntary departure under INA §240B(b)(1), where the request is raised for the first time after IJ issuance of the removal order, but prior to the conclusion of the hearing. (Alvarado v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 7/8/10)
CA1 on Disclosure of Prior Marriage in Adjustment Interview
The court found that the failure of the applicant to identify all children and a prior spouse in the adjustment of status interview was false testimony precluding a finding of good moral character for cancellation of removal. (Toribio-Chavez v. Holder, 7/8/10)
CA1 Upholds Asylum Denial Based on Changed Circumstances in Albania
The court affirmed the BIA’s denial of asylum, finding that the 2006 Department of State Country Report and Asylum Profile demonstrated changed conditions in Albania. (Nako v. Holder, 7/7/10)
BIA on Delivery of a Simulated Controlled Substance Offense
The BIA held that an offense of delivery of a simulated controlled substance in violation of TX law is not an aggravated felony under INA, but is a violation of a law relating to a controlled substance under former § 241(a)(2)(B)(i). Matter of Sanchez-Cornejo, 25 I&N Dec. 273 (BIA 2010)
EOIR Releases CASE Court Administrator Course Lesson Plan
Obtained via FOIA by Hoppock Law Firm, the purpose of this course is to train users of the Automated Nationwide System for Immigration Review (ANSIR) and Board of Appeals Processing (BIAP) to comprehend and properly use the new Case Access System for EOIR (CASE). Special thanks to Matthew Hoppock.
CA9 Finds No Judicial Admission of NTA Entry Date in NACARA Case
The government did not make a binding judicial admission about Petitioner’s entry date in the NTA for purposes of NACARA eligibility because it disputed the date during an evidentiary hearing and Petitioner never expressly objected. (Cortez-Pineda v. Holder, 7/2/10)
ICE Strategic Plan for FY2010 - FY2014
ICE issued its strategic plan for FY2010 through FY2014. This plan lays out how ICE will meet its responsibilities for criminal investigation and civil immigration enforcement over the next five years.
AILA Comments on ICE’s Proposed Extension of an Existing NSEERS Information Collection
On 06/2/10, AILA submitted a comment in connection with ICE’s proposed extension of an existing NSEERS information collection, published at 75 FR 24721, 5/05/10.
ICE Reports Number of Haitians in ICE Custody as of 6/24/10
On the ICE FOIA Reading Room, ICE reported a total of 400 Haitians in ICE Custody as of 6/24/10 including criminal and non-criminal detainees. ICE deferred to USCIS on question of the number of Haitians who have applied for asylum since the earthquake.
CA3 Finds No Jurisdiction to Review DHS Asylum Termination
The court held that the IJ and BIA did not err in determining that the immigration judge lacked jurisdiction to review DHS’s termination of Petitioner’s asylum status. (Bhargava v. Holder, 7/1/10)
CA7 Discusses “Lawfully Admitted for Permanent Residence”
The court held that Petitioner, who had a criminal conviction unknown to the government at the time his application for adjustment of status was approved, was never “lawfully admitted for permanent residence.” (Estrada-Ramos v. Holder, 7/1/10)
Immigration Law Advisor, June 2010 (Vol. 4, No. 6)
Immigration Law Advisor, a EOIR legal publication, with an article on recent developments in gang-related asylum claims, federal court activity for May 2010, an article on the bars to refugee protection, recent BIA precedent decisions, and a regulatory update.
ICE Civil Enforcement Priorities Memorandum
A 6/30/10 memo from ICE Assistant Secretary John Morton outlining the agency’s civil enforcement priorities.
BIA Overrules Saysana in Matter of Garcia-Arreola
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Matter of Garcia-Arreola and how this decision distinguishes from Saysana.
IJ Jurisdiction Over Bond Hearings Following ICE Transfer
AILA Amicus Committee alert on the practice of IJ’s refusing to conduct a bond hearing after a hearing is requested and scheduled but ICE moves the detainee. By guest writer Trina Realmuto at the National Immigration Project.
BIA Overrules Matter of Saysana Decision on Mandatory Detention
The BIA held that a post-TPCR release from non-DHS custody must be directly tied to basis for detention in INA §236(c)(1)(A)–(D) to implicate the mandatory detention provision. AILA filed an amicus brief in the case. Matter of Garcia Arreola, 25 I&N Dec. 267 (BIA 2010)
DHS Fact Sheet on Southwest Border Next Steps
DHS issued a fact sheet on department initiatives on the southwest border from the past year and a half and planned, new budget-neutral initiatives.
Sign-On Letter to ICE Expressing Views on Immigration Detainer Policy
On 6/23/10, AILA joined the ACLU and other immigrants’ rights and civil rights organizations in expressing concerns and views on the issuance of immigration detainers. This sign-on letter was presented to ICE as it works to develop guidance on detainer policy.
Sign-On Letter In Support of the HELP for Separated Children Act (S. 3522)
On 6/22/10, AILA joined a group of national and local immigrants’ rights, women’s rights, public health, medical, and religious organizations in voicing support for Senator Franken’s Humane Enforcement and Legal Protections (HELP) for Separated Children Act (S. 3522).
Senators Franken, Kohl Introduce HELP Separated Children Act
On 6/22/10, Senators Al Franken (D-MN) and Herb Kohl (D-WI) introduced the Humane Enforcement and Legal Protections (HELP) for Separated Children Act (S. 3522).
CA1 Finds "Youths Who Resist Gang Recruitment" Is Not a Social Group
Citing Mendez-Barrera v. Holder, the court held that "youths who resist gang recruitment" does not constitute a particular social group. (Larios v. Holder, 6/21/10)
BIA Holds Failure to Timely File Supporting Docs May Not Deem Application Abandoned
The BIA held that when an application for relief is timely filed but supporting documents are not submitted within time established, IJ may deem opportunity to file documents waived but may not deem the application itself abandoned. Matter of Interiano-Rosa, 25 I&N Dec. 264 (BIA 2010)