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
Asylum Seekers in the Middle of a 4th Circuit Tug of War
AILA Amicus Committee alert on the view of asylum cases within the Fourth Circuit.
CA2 Finds INA §241(a)(5) Not Impermissibly Retroactive as Applied to Petitioner
The court found that INA §241(a)(5) is not impermissibly retroactive as applied to Petitioner, does not deprive him of due process, and forecloses him from applying for certain additional types of relief. (Herrera-Molina v. Holder, 3/3/10)
CA2 Remands, Finds Errors in Consideration of Political Persecution Claim
The court found that the treatment of Petitioner's claim of political persecution based on his act of reporting official corruption to an international human rights organization was based on substantial errors. (Carranza-Fuentes v. Holder, 3/2/10)
CA5 Affirms Finding Agency’s Decision to Issue LEC Discretionary in U Visa Case
CA5 affirmed district court grant of motion to dismiss in a U Visa case finding that a law enforcement agency’s decision to issue a “law enforcement certification” (LEC) is discretionary. (Orosco v. Napolitano, 3/2/10)
EOIR FY2009 Statistical Year Book
EOIR announced that it has released its Fiscal Year 2009 Statistical Year Book. Hard copies of the publication are not currently available to the public, but a user-friendly version is available on the EOIR website.
Immigration Law Advisor, February 2010 (Vol. 4, No. 2)
Immigration Law Advisor with an article on when “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” in cancellation of removal is a question of law, federal court activity for January 2010, an article on the Ninth Circuit and the REAL ID act, recent BIA precedent decisions, and a regulatory update.
CA8 Affirms Denial for Failure to Timely Petition Court for Review of Final Removal Order
CA8 denied petition finding because respondent did not timely petition court for review of final ICE removal order, district court lacked jurisdiction “to hear any claim” for relief that would frustrate agency’s action to execute order. (Lang v. Napolitano, 3/1/10)
Matter of S-E-G-, Visibility and Invisibility
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Matter of S-E-G by guest blogger Benjamin Casper, Director of the Pro Bono Litigation Project of the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, with Stephen Manning, AILA Amicus Committee chair.
February 2010 Internal DHS Draft Memorandum Discusses Administrative Measures in Absence of CIR
A 2/26/10 DHS draft memorandum discussing administrative relief options in the absence of comprehensive immigration reform including registration and deferred action, reduction of the family-based backlogs, unlawful presence waivers, and expanded E-Verify.
CA9 on Expunged Convictions under the Federal First Offender Act
CA9 held first-time offenders convicted of using or being under influence of controlled substance and granted relief are eligible for same immigration treatment as those whose simple drug possession convictions are expunged under FFOA. (Rice v. Holder, 2/26/10)
CA2 Remands on Issue of “Government Acquiescence” under CAT
The court found that the BIA committed error in its review of the IJ’s factual findings and evidentiary record and remanded due to concerns with the BIA’s treatment of the “government acquiescence” standard under CAT (De La Rosa v. Holder, 2/25/10)
ICE Privacy Act Notice of Modification to Existing System of Records
ICE Privacy Act notice of modification to an existing system of records for the Alien Criminal Response Information Management System of Records. Comments are due 3/26/10. (75 FR 8377, 02/24/10)
ICE Announces New Arrangements for Detainees Relocated from NY Facility
On 2/12/10, ICE announced modified arrangements for detainees who have been relocated from the Varick Federal Detention Facility to the Hudson Federal Detention Facility.
CA1 Says Petitioner Not Eligible for 245(i) Grandfathering
The court upheld the BIA’s denial of adjustment of status, finding Petitioner ineligible because he entered the U.S. illegally and could not be grandfathered under INA §245(i). (Castro-Soto v. Holder, 2/24/10)
BIA Round Up: Recent Cases
AILA Amicus Committee alert on recent BIA cases, including Matter of Gamero, Matter of Diaz and Lopez, Matter of Neto, Matter of T-M-H and S-W-C, Matter of Morales, and Matter of Rose.
New York Times Issues Interactive List of Immigrant Detention Centers
The New York Times issued an interactive list of jails and detention centers used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The list includes results of annual inspections.
What to Do When a Supreme Court Expert Calls?
AILA Amicus Committee alert on calls from lawyers offering to prepare petitions for writ of certiorari and handle the case at the Supreme Court. Guest blog by Nancy Morawetz, coordinator of the Supreme Court Immigration Law Working Group at New York University School of Law.
CA4 Finds BIA May Determine Non-Aggravated Felony is Particularly Serious Crime for Purposes of Asylum
CA4 denied petition, finding that the BIA may determine that a non-aggravated felony is a particularly serious crime for purposes of asylum through the process of case-by-case adjudication. (Gao v. Holder, 2/23/10).
ICE DRO Memo on Removal Goals from The Washington Post
The Washington Post published on its website a memo dated 2/22/10 from ICE Detention and Removal Office Director James M. Chaparro on removal goals.
BIA on Application of the Modified Categorical Approach to Conviction Assessment
The BIA held that in applying the modified categorical approach to assess conviction, it is proper to consider police reports’ contents as part of conviction record if incorporated into plea or admitted by alien in criminal proceedings. Matter of Milian-Dubon, 25 I&N Dec. 197 (BIA 2010)
CA9 Finds Conviction for Receipt of Stolen Vehicle Qualifies as Crime of Moral Turpitude
CA9 denied petition finding that state felony conviction for receipt of a stolen vehicle in violation qualifies categorically as a conviction for an aggravated felony, but not as a crime involving moral turpitude. (Alvarez-Reynaga v. Holder, 2/19/10)
CA11 Remands Asylum Case Based on Analysis of In-Person Credible Death Threat
CA11 vacated and remanded asylum case, finding that a credible death threat made in person by one with the ability to carry out that threat rises to the level of persecution. (Diallo v. Holder, 2/19/10)
Notes on Nijhawan v. Holder
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Nijhawan v. Holder and the notion of a “circumstance-specific” approach to analyzing offenses.
CA9 Finds Lack of Jurisdiction to Review BIA Discretionary Denial for Abuse of Discretion
CA9 found lack of jurisdiction to review for abuse of discretion BIA’s discretionary denial of petitioner’s motion to accept untimely brief because there is no meaningful standard against which to judge agency’s exercise of discretion. (Zetino v. Holder, 2/18/10)
BIA on Cancellation of Removal Stop-Time Rule
The BIA held that when continuous residence stops upon commission of an offense pursuant to INA §240A(d)(1), the accrual of continuous residence does not restart upon the alien’s departure and re-entry into the U.S. Matter of Nelson, 25 I&N Dec. 410 (BIA 2011)