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 Finds IJ Behavior Violated Due Process
The Ninth Circuit found that an IJ's questioning and remarks about petitioner's sexual morality reflected bias that prevented her from being a neutral fact-finder, thus preventing full presentation of a claim for suspension. (Reyez-Melendez v. INS, 9/4/03)
AILA SCOPS Liaison Q&As (9/4/03)
Minutes of the 9/4/03 Service Center Operations liaison teleconference, include the proper payee on filing fee checks, when to file advance parole, a "start date" for an I-539, and NTA issuance by USCIS.
CA1 Refuses to Apply INA §241(a)(5) Retroactively
The court held that reinstatement of removal under INA §241(a)(5) could not be applied retroactively to Petitioner, who applied for relief before IIRIRA’s effective date. (Arevalo v. Ashcroft, 8/29/03)
Service Center Adjudicators May Issue NTAs
AILA has received a reliable report that BCIS plans to have adjudicators at the Service Centers start issuing Notices to Appear, possibly as early as October 1, 2003.
CA10 Finds DWI Involving No Injury to Others Not an Aggravated Felony
The Tenth Circuit distinguished the context in which Tapia Garcia v. INS arose in finding that a driving while intoxicated conviction that involved no injury to others did not constitute a crime of violence. (USA v. Lucia-Lucio, 8/28/03)
CA9 Allows Reopening of In Absentia Order in Absence of Bar Complaint
The Ninth Circuit allowed reopening of an in absentia removal order where the attorney's employee misinformed petitioners of their hearing date. The court did not require a showing under Lozado that petitioners had been prejudiced by counsel's error. (Lo v. Ashcroft, 8/27/03)
AG and DHS Secretary are Proper Respondents in the CA9 (Decision Withdrawn by Court Order on 9/1/04)
The Ninth Circuit concluded that the proper respondents in a habeas petition under 28 USC 2241 are the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Attorney General. This holding differs from First and Sixth Circuit decisions. (Armentero v. INS, 8/26/03)
Practice Alert: Pilot Program in Hartford to Detain Respondents after Merits Hearings (Revised 8/25/03)
AILA's Connecticut chapter reports that the Hartford BICE is detaining respondents who do not win at their merits hearings. There have been indications that this is a pilot program that the DHS hopes to expand nationwide.
Minutes from State Bar of Texas Meeting with AILA (8/23/03)
The 8/23/03 State Bar of Texas Committee minutes cover the following topics: backlogs, procedures, policies and staffing levels at TSC, as well as discussions with Kenneth Pasquarell (Central Regional Director of CIS) and Evelyn Upchurch (Director of CIS' TSC).
CA9 Finds Pre-St. Cyr Waiver of Appeal Invalid
The Ninth Circuit found that a 1997 waiver of a right to appeal is invalid because an IJ informed the respondent that he was not eligible for relief, thus retroactively applying 1996 and 1997 laws to a 1995 conviction. (U.S. v. Leon-Paz, 8/22/03)
CA3 Allows District Court Habeas Review of CAT Claim
Referencing St. Cyr, the court concluded that district court habeas review of the denial of a claim for relief under the Convention Against Torture is available. (Ogbudimpka v. Ashcroft, 8/22/03)
CA1 Finds Travel Act Violation Is a Controlled Substance Offense
The court held that a conviction under the Travel Act referencing “a business enterprise involving cocaine” was a violation of a law “relating to” a controlled substance under INA §237(a)(1)(A). (Urena-Ramirez v. Ashcroft, 8/22/03)
CA5 Limits St. Cyr Habeas Review to Questions of Law
CA5 upheld the dismissal of a habeas petition seeking review of a cancellation of removal hardship determination, finding that St. Cyr applies only to pure questions of law and not discretionary determinations. (Bravo v. Ashcroft, 8/22/03)
CA9 Finds Jurisdiction to Review Request to Reinstate Asylum Application
The Ninth Circuit, analogizing to motions to reopen, concluded that it has jurisdiction to review a request to reinstate an asylum application after it had been withdrawn in favor of an application for cancellation of removal that was denied. (Mendez-Gutierrez v. Ashcroft, 8/20/03)
CA9 Finds Conviction for Making Terrorist Threats an Aggravated Felony
A conviction under California law for making terrorist threats was found to be a crime of violence constituting an aggravated felony. (Rosales-Rosales v. Ashcroft, 8/17/03)
Office of Detention and Removal Strategic Plan, 2003 - 2012
Endgame is the ICE Office of Detention and Removal multi-year strategic enforcement plan that serves as the basis for operational and budgetary plans until 2012 and will build the capacity to “remove all removable aliens” and eliminate the backlog of unexecuted final order removal cases.
EOIR OPPM 03-05: Scheduling Leave, Approval of Leave Requests, and Time and Attendance Reports for Court Personnel
EOIR issues Operating Policies and Procedure Memorandum (OPPM) 03-05: Scheduling Leave, Approval of Leave Requests, and Time and Attendance Reports for Court Personnel, which replaces OPPM 98-04, dated August 27, 1998.
AILA Issue Paper on Access to Counsel
AILA Issue Paper on access to counsel, including representation in immigration matters adjudicated at ports of entry and representation in the interior since 9/11.
BIA Denies Discretionary Relief for Breaching Protective Order
The BIA held that Respondent is ineligible for any relief except for bond, because a protective order was violated by disclosure of information to unauthorized persons and that there are reasonable grounds for regarding Respondent as a danger to U.S. security. (Matter of R-S-H-, 8/4/03)
CA9 Upholds BIA Streamlining Procedures
Court rejects due process challenge to BIA’s affirmance-without-opinion procedure. (Falcon Carriche v. Ashcroft, 7/14/03)
DHS Implements "Operation Predator"
A recent DHS memo instructs DHS trial attorneys to "flag" cases in which an alien has been convicted of a criminal offense against children and to oppose bond, according to sources within the agency.
EOIR Announces New Local Operating Procedures for Buffalo & Batavia, NY
EOIR, on 7/1/03, posted to its website new local operating procedures for the Immigration Courts in Buffalo and Batavia, New York.
Ohio & Kentucky Immigration Court Case Files Moved to New Sites as of 7/1/03
EOIR, in a 6/23/03 News Release, announced that the administrative control of Immigration Court case files, including Records of Proceedings, for Ohio and Kentucky was transferred to new locations, effective 7/1/03.
EOIR Memo on Use of FedEx Delivery Services by Immigration Courts
EOIR Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum (OPPM) 03-04, dated 7/9/03, provides guidance on the acceptable uses of FedEx Delivery Services by the immigration courts.
EOIR Updates List of Internal Agency Case-Tracking Codes
EOIR Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum (OPPM) 03-03, dated 7/8/03, revises and adds to the agency’s list of Adjournment, Call-up, and Case Identification Codes. The EOIR uses these codes primarily for case tracking purposes in the agency’s automated system.