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
CA2 Upholds 3-Part Test for Asylum Based on More than One Child
The court found that the well-founded fear requirement for more than one child in China must be decided on a case-by-case basis and that the BIA’s three-step evidentiary analysis did not increase the burden of proof. (Shao v. Mukasey, 10/10/08)
EOIR Fact Sheet on FOIA Request Filings
A 10/9/08 Fact Sheet outlines procedures for filing a FOIA request with EOIR.
ICE Strategy of Prosecution for Federal Crimes and Swift Deportation
A policy brief from the DHS-NGO Enforcement Working Group reviews ICE's recent enforcement actions in Postville, Iowa and Laurel Mississippi, and pinpoints the human rights violations inherent in ICE's latest strategies.
CA2 on Burden of Proof in Abandonment of Status Determination
The court found that because the petitioner left the country as an LPR, the sole question is whether she abandoned that status during her trip abroad, which DHS bore the burden of proving by clear, unequivocal and convincing evidence. (Matadin v. Mukasey, 10/8/08)
CA6 Finds a Birth of Two US Children Cannot Support MTR Asylum Claim
CA6 holds that, after a removal order is final for 90+ days, the exclusive avenue for relief is a motion to reopen and an additional asylum application is permissible if supported by changed country conditions, not changed personal circumstances. (Zhang v. Mukasey, 10/8/08)
CA9 Holds Non-Aggravated Felony Crimes Can Be Bars to Asylum and Withholding
The court deferred to the BIA’s interpretation that for purposes of withholding, the INA permits a determination that an applicant’s crime is particularly serious even though the crime is not an aggravated felony. (Delgado v. Mukasey, 10/8/08)
CA2 Says Removal Proceedings Preclude Court’s Ability to Grant Naturalization
The court found that the district court properly dismissed the petitioner’s INA §336(b) claim for failure to state a claim on which naturalization relief could be granted while removal proceedings were pending. (Ajlani v. Chertoff, 10/7/08)
BIA Addresses Asylum and Resistance to Forced IUDs in China
The BIA held that the insertion of an IUD as part of China's family planning policy does not rise to the level of harm necessary to constitute “persecution” absent aggravating circumstances. Matter of M-F-W- & L-G, 24 I&N Dec. 633 (BIA 2008)
BIA Denies MTR Sua Sponte Holding Departure Bar Remains in Effect
The BIA held that the departure bar rule remains in effect, thus it lacks jurisdiction to consider the removed alien’s motion to reopen sua sponte. Matter of Armendarez-Mendez, 24 I&N Dec. 646 (BIA 2008)
CA9 Upholds Adverse Credibility Finding for Gay Guatemalan with One Dissent
CA9 declined to apply the law of the case for this claim that had been remanded once to the BIA, finding that it would constitute a manifest injustice, then held that the adverse credibility determinations were well supported by substantial evidence. (Martinez v. Mukasey, 10/6/08)
AILF Files Amicus Brief with Attorney General on Ineffective Counsel
AILF amicus brief reiterating immigrants' right to protection against ineffective assistance of counsel after the AG signaled that he may eliminate immigrants' long-standing ability to protect their rights and salvage their removal case when former counsel was ineffective.
President Signs the Child Soldiers Accountability Act of 2008
On 10/3/08, President Bush signed into law the Child Soldiers Accountability Act of 2008 (PL 110-340). The law amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to render any alien who has recruited or used child soldiers inadmissible or deportable.
AILA Applauds the Introduction of the Immigration Oversight and Fairness Act
AILA applauds the introduction of the Immigration Oversight and Fairness Act (H.R. 7255) by Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), which calls for an end to unlawful detention and detainee abuse.
EOIR Issues Memo on Administrative Closure of Cases Pursuant to the ABC Settlement Agreement
Obtained via FOIA by Hoppock Law Firm, EOIR released a memo on administrative closure of cases pursuant to the ABC settlement agreement. Special thanks to Matthew Hoppock.
Immigration Law Advisor, September 2008 (Vol. 2, No. 9)
Immigration Law Advisor with an article on identity and persecution in sexual orientation asylum claims, federal court activity for August 2008, an article on rebutting the “presumptive inference” from past to future persecution, AG/BIA precedent decisions, and a regulatory update.
CA1 Finds Lebanese Christian Failed to Show Likelihood of Persecution
The court upheld the BIA’s determination that the incidents of harassment Petitioner experienced in Lebanon did not rise to the level of persecution, and that Petitioner failed to show he would be in danger upon return. (El-Labaki v. Mukasey, 10/1/08)
CA1 Remands Economic Persecution Claim of Gay Indonesian Doctor
The court remanded the case for clarification of the standard the BIA used in rejecting Petitioner’s economic persecution claim. The IJ found that Petitioner had suffered past persecution because he was unable to earn a living. (Kadri v. Mukasey, 9/30/08)
Indictment for Illegal Re-entry Dismissed as Defendant was Deprived of Opportunity for Judicial Review
District Court grants motion to dismiss indictment, finding that defendant was eligible for § 212(c) relief because he relied upon pre-AEDPA/IIRIRA law as it existed at the time of pleading. (U.S. v. Medina-Avila, 9/29/08)
AILA Comment on EOIR’S Proposed Rules for Professional Responsibility
AILA comment on the proposed rule, “Professional Conduct for Practitioners – Rules and Procedures, and Representation and Appearances,” stressing the need for greater clarity of standards for misconduct and the need to reexamine the disciplinary procedures.
AILA Commends Senators Menendez and Kennedy for Introducing Raids and Detention Bill
AILA welcomes the introduction of the Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act (S.3594) by Senators Menendez (D-NJ) and Kennedy (D-MA), which would establish minimum standards of treatment for individuals impacted by immigration enforcement operations.
Overview of the Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act (S. 3594)
AILA overview of the Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act (S. 3594), introduced by Senator Menendez (D-NJ)on 9/26/08.
Analysis of the Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act
Section-by-section analysis of the Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act (S. 3594), introduced by Senator Menendez (D-NJ) on 9/26/08.
AAO Finds that a Single Act of Soliciting Prostitution on One's Own Behalf Is Not a Crime Involving Moral Turpitude
AAO finds that the 212(h) waiver applicant was convicted of only one crime involving moral turpitude, which qualifies under the petty offense exception. Also found that a single act of soliciting prostitution on own behalf does not fall within INA §212(a)(2)(D)(ii). Courtesy of Victoria Gentile.
Text of Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act
On 9/25/08, Senators Menendez (D-NJ) and Kennedy (D-MA) introduced the “Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act” (S.3594). The bill would restore basic due process protections for U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents and workers during immigration raids.
Attorney General Certifies Matter of R-A- and Lifts Stay
The Attorney General lifted the stay in Matter of R-A- and remanded the case to the Board to revisit the issues presented with respect to asylum claims based on domestic violence in light of current law. Matter of R-A-, 24 I&N Dec. 629 (AG 2008)