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
CA3 Grants EAJA Fees For Winning Remand to the BIA
Joining other circuits, the Third Circuit applied the rationale in Shalala and concluded that a petitioner who wins remand to the BIA is a prevailing party for EAJA purposes regardless of whether the person ultimately prevails in immigration proceedings. (Johnson v. Gonzales, 7/25/05)
CA3 Holds BIA’s Findings Were Unsupported by the Record
The court found that the BIA’s basis for rejecting Petitioner’s claim was unsupported by the record and that the BIA impermissibly focused on general unrest in Colombia and the fact that Petitioner’s parents and brothers remained in Colombia unharmed. (Vente Vente v. Gonzales, 7/22/05)
CA6 Addresses REAL ID “Transitional Rule Cases” Provision and New INS §242(a)(2)(D) (Updated 11/7/05)
CA6 found that §106(d) of the REAL ID Act places transitional rule cases under the judicial review rules applicable to removal. §106(a), which added new INA §242(a)(2)(D), expands the court's direct review of removal orders over legal and constitutional questions. (Elia v. Gonzales, 7/22/05)
CA1 Upholds IJ’s Adverse Credibility Determination in Albanian Claim
The court agreed with the IJ that the Albanian asylum applicant was not credible, failed to link the claimed attacks to his political beliefs, and presented corroborating evidence that undermined his claim. (Kasneci v. Gonzales, 7/21/05)
CA1 Remands Cambodian Withholding Claim for Past Persecution Determination
The court remanded the case for further consideration of Petitioner’s past persecution claim, noting that Petitioner received both explicit and implicit death threats, and that a threat to life could amount to persecution. (Un v. Gonzales, 7/21/05)
CA1 on Aggravated Felony Bar to §212(c) Relief
The court held that Petitioner, whose application for §212(c) was delayed for years due to an erroneous agency legal interpretation, such that he had served more than 5 years by the time he could proceed, is barred from relief. (Pereira v. Gonzales, 7/21/05)
U.S. Courts Memo on Retention and Disposition of Passports
Administrative Office of the United States Courts memorandum on the revised process for the transfer of foreign passports and associated notices to ICE field offices.
BIA Says Time To Prove GMC For Cancellation Ends with Final Administrative Decision
The BIA held that the 10-year period during which good moral character must be established for cancellation purposes ends with the date of entry of a final administrative decision by the IJ or BIA. (Matter of Ortega-Cabrera, 7/21/05)
CA6 Questions IJ’s Objectivity in Adverse Credibility Ruling
Raising concerns about the IJ’s objectivity, the Court found that the alleged inconsistencies and deficiencies found by the IJ and BIA “come nowhere close” to supporting the conclusion that Petitioner’s persecution claim was false. (Mece v. Gonzales, 7/20/05)
Text of the Comprehensive Enforcement and Immigration Reform Act of 2005 (S. 1438)
Text of the Comprehensive Enforcement and Immigration Reform Act of 2005 (S. 1438), co-sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ) and introduced on 7/20/05.
Congressional Section-By-Section Analysis of S. 1438
A congressional section-by-section analysis of the Comprehensive Enforcement and Immigration Reform Act co-sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ).
Congressional Summary of S. 1438
A congressional summary of the Comprehensive Enforcement and Immigration Reform Act co-sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-TX) and Jon Kyl (R-AZ).
CA10 Dismisses Petition Due to Lack of Jurisdiction
The court dismissed the petition for lack of appellate jurisdiction because the Immigration Judge denied relief on discretionary grounds. (Ekasinta v. Gonzales, 7/19/05)
CA7 Says IJ’s Asylum Denial “Completely Disregarded” Test For Lack of Corroborating Evidence
The Court found that IJ erred in denying the asylum claim for lack of corroboration and for not adequately considering Petitioner’s explanations for missing documents, including the outbreak of civil war in Cote d’Ivoire and a misdirected DHL package. (Soumahoro v. Gonzales, 7/19/05)
Rep. Tancredo’s Section-by-Section Summary of REAL GUEST Act of 2005 (H.R. 3333)
On 7/18/05, Rep. Tancredo (R-CO) unveiled a counterproposal to the various CIR bills currently under discussion, titled the “Rewarding Employers that Abide by the Law and Guaranteeing Uniform Enforcement to Stop Terrorism (REAL GUEST) Act of 2005."
CA3 Addresses REAL ID’s Impact on Pending Habeas Appeals
The court held that habeas appeals pending on 5/11/05 may be reviewed as petitions for review and declined to transfer the case notwithstanding the fact that the IJ hearing was conducted in another circuit because the case had been briefed and argued. (Bonhometre v. Gonzales, 7/15/05)
CA11 Lacks Jurisdiction Over NACARA AOS Denial
The Eleventh Circuit held that the “clear language” of NACARA §202(f) barred it from reviewing a BIA decision reversing the IJ’s decision to grant Petitioner’s adjustment of status application. (Ortega v. Gonzales, 7/15/05)
Government Modifies Position on Application of Renteria-Gonzales in Fifth Circuit Cases Involving Vacated Convictions
In its opposition to an en banc rehearing petition, the government stated it wished to apply Matter of Pickering, not Renteria-Gonzalez, to the vacated conviction and terminate removal proceedings. Thus, CA5 denied the petition as moot. (Discipio v. Ashcroft, 7/13/05)
CA7 Addresses New INA §242(a)(2)(D) Added by Real ID
Pursuant to new INA §242(a)(2)(D), added by the REAL ID Act, the court reviewed the merits of Petitioner’s due process challenges to his removal proceedings and his equal protection challenge to different treatment of state and federal drug possession offenses. (Ramos v. Gonzales, 7/12/05)
CA7 Overturns BIA’s Denial of Motion to Reopen Asylum Application Based on Conversion to Jehovah’s Witness Faith
CA7 held that the BIA erred in denying a motion to reopen and requiring more proof of religious conversion when she already had provided an affidavit and an explanation of why official confirmation of her conversion could not be submitted in time. (Fessehaye v. Gonzales, 7/8/05)
ICE Announces Personnel Changes
An email circulated to ICE personnel announces the appointment of Acting Chief of Staff, Acting Director of the Office of Policy and Planning, Acting Director of Detention & Removal, and Acting Director of Intelligence, as well as other personnel appointments.
CA4 Says Involuntary Manslaughter is Not a Crime of Violence
Applying the Supreme Court’s rationale in Leocal v. Ashcroft, CA4 found that involuntary manslaughter is not a crime of violence because “it does not intrinsically involve a substantial risk that force will be applied ‘as a means to an end.’” (Bejarano-Urrutia v. Gonzales, 7/5/05)
CA5 Affirms Matter of Roldan and Hernandez-Avalos
The court affirmed that state court guilty pleas to marijuana possession offenses are aggravated felony convictions for immigration purposes even if the person subsequently received deferred adjudication. (Salazar-Regino et al. v. Gonzales, 6/30/05)
CA11 Upholds IJ’s Findings on Fear for Albanian Asylum Seeker
CA11 found that a 2-3 hour detention, with no physical harmed, as well as the extortion attempts, did not rise to the level of persecution. It also found that Petitioner had not shown that he would be targeted on account of a protected ground. (Kroi v. Gonzales, 6/29/05)
CA5 Addresses New INA Section 242(a)(2)(D) in Administrative Removal Case
The court held that new INA section 242(a)(2)(D) permitted review of Petitioner’s equal protection challenge to DHS’ discretion to place a non-LPR with an aggravated felony conviction in either IJ removal proceedings or administrative removal proceedings (Flores-Ledezma v. Gonzales, 6/27/05)