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 Letter on B-2 Visa with Waiver of Excludability for Commission of Crimes.
A 03/17/94 letter from Jacquelyn A. Bednarz, Chief, Nonimmigrant Branch, INS regarding the B-2 visa with waiver of excludability for commission of crimes.
Government Settles First Judgment Against INS for Wrongful Deportation
The U.S. government has determined to not appeal a judgment of close to $300,000 for the negligent failure of INS officers to follow INS procedures in effecting the 1987 deportation of five Koreans who were eligible to apply for legalization. (Kim v. U.S., 3/16/94)
CA9 Refuses to Extend Fleuti Doctrine to Non-LPR
Noting that the Fleuti exception only applies to LPRs, the court refused to extend it to the petitioner who entered illegally in 1975 and left in 1979 for three days to visit her parents who were ill. (Mendoza v. INS, 2/7/94)
EOIR Memo on Cancellation of Outdated OPPMs
EOIR memo 93-4, dated 12/22/93, outlines the 38 cancelled Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandums (OPPMs) and indicates the reasoning for the cancellation.
EOIR Memo on Immigration Judge Decisions and Orders
EOIR memo 93-1, dated 5/6/93, with procedures for written, oral and in absentia Immigration Judge decisions and Immigration Judge orders, to provide uniformity and consistency in Immigration Judge proceedings.
EOIR Memo II on the ABC v. Thornburg Settlement
EOIR memo 91-1, dated 1/11/91, the second memo on the American Baptist Churches v. Thornburgh settlement, and administrative closure of El Salvadoran and Guatemalan cases subject to temporary protected status and the settlement.
EOIR Memo on the ABC v. Thornburg Settlement
EOIR memo 90-9, dated 12/20/90, on the American Baptist Churches v. Thornburgh settlement and its impact on El Salvadorans with applications for political asylum and their eligibility for TPS.
EOIR Memo on Handling Charging Document in Administratively Closed Cases
EOIR OPPM 90-4, issued on 6/5/90 by Chief Immigration Judge William R. Robie, establishes that the Office of the Immigration Judge will retain the original charging document in the Record of Proceeding when an immigration judge has administratively closed a case.
BIA Acknowledges Homosexuality as Particular Social Group
The BIA found that the respondent, a homosexual male from Cuba, established his membership in a particular social group and demonstrated that his freedom was threatened for purposes of withholding under former INA §243(h). (Matter of Toboso-Alfonso, 3/12/90)
EOIR Memo on Courtroom Security
EOIR memo 88-9, dated 11/29/88, on courtroom security in detained and non-detained circumstances.
EOIR Memo on Charging Documents in Previously Administratively Closed Cases
EOIR memo 88-3, dated 5/11/88, with procedures for filing of charging documents in cases previously administratively closed including actions by Immigration Judge support personnel and the Immigration Judge.
EOIR Memo on Automation of the Manual Information System on ANSIR
EOIR OPPM 87-1, issued by Chief Immigration Judge William Robie on 1/14/87, sets forth the policies and procedures for the manual Information System for ANSIR cities only. Memo is effective 1/1/87. Memo was rescinded 6/15/17 per EOIR website.
BIA Finds Lawyer’s Concession of Deportability in Motion for Change of Venue Is Binding
The BIA held that, absent a showing of egregious circumstances, an attorney's decision to concede an individual’s deportability in a motion for change of venue is binding upon the individual as an admission. Matter of Velasquez, 19 I & N Dec. 377 (1986)
EOIR Memo on Adjustment of Status and Creation of Record of Lawful Permanent Residence; Other INS Forms and Background Investigations
EOIR OPPM 86-1, issued 3/14/86 by Chief Immigration Judge William Robie, establishes policy on the role of INS Form I-181 (Memorandum of Creation of Record of Lawful Permanent Residence), other INS forms, and background investigation documents in EOIR proceedings. Memo was rescinded 6/15/17.
EOIR OPPM 84-9: Processing Hearing Transcriptions
EOIR issued Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum 84-9, on processing hearing transcriptions and the Immigration Court’s serious backlog.
EOIR OPPM 84-7: Court Proceedings Against EOIR Employees
EOIR issued Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum 84-7, on court proceedings against EOIR employees, stating that in most circumstances, DOJ will represent its employees in tort action or other court proceedings.
EOIR Memo on Failures to Appear
EOIR memo 84-2, dated 3/7/84, with procedures for cases in which the respondent/applicant fails to appear for a hearing and options available to the Immigration Judge. This memo was rescinded on 9/18/18.
EOIR OPPM 84-1: Case Priorities and Processing
EOIR issued Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum 84-1: Case Priorities and Processing on detained cases, processing of detained bond redetermination hearings, use of questionnaires and bond redetermination hearings, and exclusion and other cases.
BIA Finds Preconceived Intent Alone Is Insufficient Basis for Denial of an Adjustment Application
The BIA held that if preconceived intent is the only adverse factor in an adjustment of status application in the case of an immediate relative, the application should ordinarily be granted as a matter of discretion absent other negative factors. Matter of Cavazos, 17 I&N Dec. 215 (BIA 1980)
AILA Amicus Brief in Support of John Lennon’s Adjustment of Status
AILA (formerly the Association of Immigration and Nationality Lawyers) amicus brief from 1975 arguing Lennon’s 1968 marijuana conviction was not for a crime involving mens rea, and urging the rejection of the decision to deny his adjustment of status. Courtesy of Jason Abrams.
Supreme Court Says Certain Immigration Decisions Made Outside the Context of Deportation Proceedings Are Not Subject to Review
The U.S. Supreme Court held that the judicial review provisions of INA §106(a) embrace only those determinations made during a proceeding conducted under INA §242(b), including those determinations made incident to a motion to reopen such proceedings. (Cheng Fan Kwok v. INS, 1968)