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
BIA Holds Alien Returning to U.S. After Failed Canadian Refugee Application is "Arriving Alien"
The BIA held that an alien who leaves the U.S. and is admitted to Canada to seek refugee status has made a departure and thus is an arriving alien when returning after the denial of an application for refugee status in Canada. Matter of R-D-, 24 I&N Dec. 221 (BIA 2007)
Immigration Law Advisor, June 2007 (Vol. 1, No. 6)
Immigration Law Advisor with articles on the unsettled concept of firm resettlement as a bar to asylum and how EOIR motions are being governed by federal courts, court activity for May 2007, update on recent BIA precedent decisions, a legislative commentary on S. 1639, and a regulatory update.
Human Rights Watch Assesses the Impact of Deportation Policy
A July 2007 Human Rights Watch report entitled "Forced Apart: Families Separated and Immigrants Harmed by U.S. Deportation Policy" addresses the ways in which AEDPA and IIRAIRA have impacted immigrants and their families.
CA5 Holds Texas Hit and Run Constitutes a Crime Involving Moral Turpitude
The court held that Petitioner’s conviction for failure to stop and render aid following a fatal car accident in which he was involved under Texas Transportation Code §550.021 constitutes a crime involving moral turpitude. (Garcia-Maldonado v. Gonzales, 6/29/07)
CA5 Finds Jurisdiction to Issue Stays of Voluntary Departure
The court held that once the Attorney General has granted voluntary departure, the court has jurisdiction to stay the voluntary departure period to preserve the status quo pending its review of the underlying order of removal. (Sierra Vidal v. Gonzales, 6/27/07)
CA2 on Solicitation Where a Drug Crime Is the Intended Objective
The court held that Petitioner was inadmissible for a controlled substance violation as a result of his solicitation conviction under NY Penal Law §100.05(1), because the solicitation had a drug crime as its intended objective. (Mizrahi v. Gonzales, 6/27/07)
BIA Finds INA §237(a)(2)(E) Does Not Apply to Pre-enactment Convictions
The BIA held that an alien whose conviction precedes the effective date of INA section 237(a)(2)(E) is not “convicted of an offense under” that section and therefore is not barred from establishing eligibility for cancellation of removal. Matter of Gonzalez-Silva, 24 I&N Dec. 218 (BIA 2007)
CA2 Remands for Determination of Whether Defected KGB Agents Constitute PSG
The court noted that it was not its task to determine in the first instance whether “defected KGB agents” constitute a particular social group and remanded to the BIA. (Koudriachova v. Gonzales, 6/26/07)
CA3 Holds Stop-Time Rule Does Not Permit New Period of Continuous Presence to Begin Following Crime
For purposes of the stop-time rule, the court rejected the argument that the commission of a crime only ends one period of continuous presence and that a new one begins after the crime is committed. (Briseno-Flores v. Att’y Gen. of the U.S., 6/26/07)
Summary of Graham-Kyl-Martinez “Omnibus” Amendment
Summary of the Graham-Kyl-Martinez Amendment to S. 1639, which would impose mandatory detention and a permanent bar on relief for visa overstays, and would require a “touchback” prior to Z visa status, among other provisions.
CA9 Finds Jurisdiction Over Habeas Appeal Filed After REAL ID’s Enactment
The court held that a habeas petition is “pending” in district court within the meaning of §106(c) of the REAL ID Act, when the notice of appeal was not filed at the time the Act was enacted, but was filed within the 60-day period. (Singh v. Gonzales, 6/25/07)
CA5 Holds Reinstatement Not Impermissibly Retroactive as Applied to Spouse of LPR
CA5 held that reinstatement of a prior removal order was not impermissibly retroactive. Although Petitioner’s I-130 was approved pre-IIRAIRA, a visa was not available and thus there was no vested right to adjustment before IIRAIRA’s effective date. (Rosa v. Gonzales, 6/25/07)
CA5 Upholds Removal of Petitioner for Falsely Claiming U.S. Citizenship to Gain Private Employment
CA5 held that private sector employment is a “purpose or benefit” under the INA and thus a person who falsely claims U.S. citizenship in order to gain such employment is inadmissible under INA §212(a)(6)(C)(ii)(I) and removable under INA §237(a)(3)(D)(i). (Theodros v. Gonzales, 6/25/07)
BIA Discusses “Mixed Motive” Asylum Cases
The BIA held that under the REAL ID Act, in mixed motive asylum cases, race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion must be at least one central reason for the claimed persecution. Matter of J-B-N- & S-M-, 24 I&N Dec. 208 (BIA 2007)
CA9 Holds USC Grandchild is Not a Qualifying Relative for Cancellation of Removal
CA9 held that a U.S. citizen grandchild, in the lawful custody of non-citizen grandparents, does not meet the statutory definition of “child” for purposes of cancellation of removal, nor do they qualify by virtue of a de facto parent-child relationship. (Moreno-Morante v. Gonzales, 6/21/07)
CA3 Holds Husband May Stand in Shoes of Wife in Population Control Case
The court upheld the BIA’s determination that one spouse’s qualifications for asylum may be imputed to the other spouse in coercive population control claims. (Chen v. Att’y Gen. of U.S., 6/20/07)
CA2 Remands to Allow Petitioner to Respond to Administratively Noticed Facts
The court held that the BIA abused its discretion in denying Petitioner’s motion to reopen based solely on administratively noticed facts, without giving Petitioner an opportunity to rebut the inferences drawn from those facts. (Chhetry v. DOJ, 6/20/07)
CA5 Discusses 120-Day Clock for Naturalization Adjudications Under INA §336(b)
The court held that when a CIS naturalization examination is premature because the FBI check is not complete, the 120-day period of INA §336(b) does not begin to run until CIS receives the FBI’s “definitive response,” as required by 8 CFR §335.2(b). (Walji v. Gonzales, 6/19/07)
BIA Discusses Waivers of Inadmissibility for LPRs
The BIA held that a returning lawful permanent resident seeking to overcome a ground of inadmissibility is not required to apply for adjustment of status in conjunction with a waiver of inadmissibility under section 212(h). Matter of Abosi, 24 I&N Dec. 204 (BIA 2007)
CA11 Remands Denial of MTR by Chinese Asylum Applicant with 2 USC Children
The court held that in light of the record, it was arbitrary and capricious for the BIA to find that Petitioner failed to establish a prima facie case for asylum or withholding based on the birth of two children in the US. (Li v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 6/18/07)
CA3 Finds BIA Erred in Applying Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Standard
The court held that the BIA abused its discretion in denying the motion to reopen and used this case to “clarify the analytical framework for claims of ineffective assistance of counsel in removal proceedings.” (Fadiga v. Att’y Gen. of U.S., 6/15/07)
CA5 Finds No Equal Protection Violation in Refusing to Give Effect to Foreign Expungement
CA5 held no equal protection violation in refusing to treat a foreign conviction, which had been expunged under England’s Rehabilitation of Offenders Act, in the same manner as it would have treated a conviction expunged under the FFOA. (Danso v. Gonzales, 6/15/07)
CA6 Remands Asylum Denial in Iraqi Case and Criticizes Conduct of IJ
The court held that, based on the IJ’s conduct and its effect on Petitioner’s ability to testify accurately, it could not conclude that the IJ’s adverse credibility finding was based on substantial evidence. (Elias v. Gonzales, 6/15/07)
CA6 Finds Chinese Labor Activist Was Persecuted for His Political Opinion
In reversing the IJ, the court found that Petitioner was persecuted not merely as a striker protesting his potential loss of employment, but as a political activist attempting to expose corruption by government officials and to protect workers’ interests. (Bu v. Gonzales, 6/15/07)
CA6 Finds IJ Jurisdiction Over Portability Determinations Under INA §204(j)
CA6 held that IJs have jurisdiction over I-140 portability determinations under INA §204(j), and that in the context of an adjustment application, the IJ can consider inadmissibility for misrepresentation, even if that ground was not charged in the NTA. (Matovski v. Gonzales, 6/15/07)