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
INS Final Regulation on Indefinite Detention
INS final rule for review process governing detention of persons ordered removed but whose removal has not been effected within 90 days. Rule is effective 12/21/00. (65 FR 80281, 12/21/00)
BIA Finds Motion to Remand Does Not Cure Untimely Motion to Reopen
The BIA held that a motion to remand submitted during the pendency of an appeal from an IJ’s denial of an untimely motion to reopen and filed after entry of a final administrative decision does not cure the untimeliness of the initial motion to reopen. (Matter of Oparah, 12/15/00)
BIA Says CA Possession of a Firearm by a Felon Is Not an Aggravated Felony
The BIA held that possession of a firearm by a felon in violation of §12021(a)(1) of the California Penal Code is not an aggravated felony under INA §101(a)(43)(E) because it is not an offense “described in” 18 USC §922(g)(1). (Matter of Vasquez-Muniz, 12/1/00)
INS Proposed Repapering Regulation
INS proposed rule to enable termination of deportation, and institution of removal proceedings for persons without final administrative orders who are ineligible for relief under deportation proceedings but eligible for relief under removal. (65 FR 71273, 11/30/00)
Supreme Court to Hear Judicial Review and 212(c) Cases
Supreme Court to hear two cases on the right to judicial review of removal orders and whether AEDPA and IIRAIRA eliminated eligibility for 212(c) relief retroactively.
INS Memo on Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion
A 11/17/00 memo from Doris Meissner, Commissioner (INS) outlining considerations and procedures for the exercise of prosecutorial discretion in all stages of the enforcement process.
EOIR/AILA Liaison Questions and Answers (11/8/00)
EOIR's answers to AILA Liaison questions from the 11/8/00 meeting. Topics include I-130 visa petition backlogs at INS, new professional conduct regulations, proposal to permit electronic filings, pro bono coordinator activities, televideo merit hearings, and obtaining cassette tapes from hearings.
TV Documentary Highlights Violations of American Principles Against Immigrants
AILA press release on the "American Dream, American Nightmare," a TV documentary that highlights the stories of four legal permanent residents threatened with deportation for minor offenses committee years ago.
BIA on AEDPA 440(d) in the Second Circuit
The BIA held that pursuant to Henderson v. INS, a respondent in the 2nd Circuit whose proceedings were pending on 4/24/96 is not subject to the changes made to §212(c) by AEDPA §440(d). (Matter of Davis, 11/2/00)
Summary of VAWA II Immigration Fixes
Summary of the changes resulting from the passage of the Violence Against Women Act of 2000 (P.L. 106-386).
BIA on Mandatory Custody and Transitional Rules
The BIA held that INA §236(c) does not apply to an alien who was convicted after expiration of the Transition Period Custody Rules, but who was released prior to the expiration of the rules, and who was not confined or restrained as a result of that conviction. (Matter of West, 10/26/00)
BIA Finds Attempted Possession of Stolen Property Is an Aggravated Felony
The BIA held that the respondent’s conviction for attempted possession of stolen property is an aggravated felony theft offense under INA §§101(a)(43)(G) and (U). (Matter of Bahta, 10/4/00)
ICE Detention Operations Manual (2000)
ICE Detention Operations Manual, issued in September 2000, providing standards for detainee services, health care, security, and other conditions of confinement at immigration detention facilities.
INS Q&As on Deferred Enforced Departure for Liberians
INA provides Q&As on deferred enforced departure for Liberians, which grants certain, qualified Liberian citizens and nationals protection from removal from the United States until 9/29/01.
INS News Release on Deferred Enforced Departure for Liberians
INS announced it will defer for one year the removal of certain qualified Liberians present in the United States. Under DED, approximately 10,000 Liberians as of 9/29/00, will be protected from removal for one year and will be eligible to receive employment authorization in the United States.
Amicus Brief in Andreiu v Reno
Motion and accompanying amicus brief filed by AILF and AILA in support of Motion for Rehearing in Andreiu v. Reno (9th Cir), a recent case interpreting INA §242(f)(2) as imposing a very high standard for obtaining a stay of removal pending judicial review.
BIA on Effect of New York Vacatur on Conviction for Immigration Purposes
The BIA held that a conviction that has been vacated under Article 440 of New York Criminal Procedure Law is no longer a conviction for immigration purposes within the meaning of INA §101(a)(48)(A). (Matter of Rodriguez-Ruiz, 9/22/00)
Immigration Advocates Continue to Press to Fix Harsh 1996 Laws
AILA press release on H.R. 5062, which recognized the harshness and over breadth of the 1996 immigration laws, stating “The unanimous passage of this bipartisan legislation in the House sends an important message that this year we can and should restore fairness to our immigration laws.”
Amicus Brief Filed in U.S. v. Pacheco
AILA, National Immigration Project, and N.Y. State Defenders Association amicus brief in U.S. v. Pacheco, in which district court held that “aggravated felony” can include certain misdemeanors.
EOIR Memo on Attorney Discipline
EOIR memorandum 00-02 on attorney discipline. Memo reflects new process and significant differences as a result of the revised attorney discipline procedure as of 7/27/00. Memo includes instructions on filing complaints, hearings, and IJ decisions.
BIA on Impact of Resentencing on Youthful Offenders in New York
The BIA held that under New York Law, the resentencing of a youthful offender following a violation of probation does not convert the youthful offender adjudication into a judgment of conviction. (Matter of Devison-Charles, 9/12/00)
BIA Reissues Devison-Charles Opinion in Light of INS Motion
The BIA reissued its opinion to include a decision on an INS motion to reconsider. Prior Holding: Under New York Law, the resentencing of a youthful offender following a violation of probation does not convert the adjudication into a conviction. (Matter of Devison-Charles, 9/12/00)
VAWA Unit Authorized to Extend Deferred Action
A 9/8/00 memo from Michael Cronin, Acting Executive Associate Commissioner (INS), authorizing the VAWA unit at VSC to extend deferred action for battered spouses and children with approved self-petitions, and suspends the maximum validity times outlined in an earlier memo.
ICE’s Detention Operations Manual (2000)
A 2000 version of ICE’s Detention Operations Manual.
Comments on 212(c) Regulations
AILA, AILF, and 8 other organizations commented on the EOIR's proposal to partially restore section 212(c) relief, suggesting revisions necessary to achieve greater substantive and procedural fairness for those who should benefit from this regulation.