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
AAO Finds Director Did Not Fully Evaluate Favorable Factors in Denying Application for Permission to Reapply for Admission
In a nonprecedent decision, the AAO withdrew the Director’s decision denying the applicant’s Form I-212 and remanded, finding that it did not reflect a proper analysis of the favorable and unfavorable factors in the applicant’s case. Courtesy of Alan Lee. In Re: 5511191 (AAO 5/6/21)
DHS Issues Statement on the Expiration of 100-Day Removal Pause
DHS issued a statement on the expiration of the 100-day pause on removals. Per the statement: “DHS does not intend to extend or reinstate a policy requiring a pause on the execution of final orders of removal for any noncitizens.”
Iranians Forced Into Military Service Face Immigration Blockade
AILA member Scott Emerick details litigation recently filed to ensure Iranian nationals forced to serve in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps aren't harmed by the U.S. government's decision to retroactively name it a terrorist organization.
CA8 Says a Grant of TPS Does Not Excuse INA §240A(a)’s Admission Requirement for TPS Recipients
The court held that petitioner’s grant of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) did not remove the need for him to show that he was admitted in order to be eligible for cancellation of removal, and that his grant of TPS was not an admission for cancellation purposes. (Artola v. Garland, 5/5/21)
CA3 Holds That IJs and the BIA Have General Authority to Administratively Close Cases
The court held that 8 CFR §§1003.10(b) and 1003.1(d)(1)(ii) unambiguously grant IJs and the BIA general authority to administratively close cases by authorizing them to take “any action” that is “appropriate and necessary” for the disposition of cases. (Arcos Sanchez v. Att’y Gen., 5/5/21)
CA3 Says IJs Have Jurisdiction over Removal Proceedings Started by a Notice of Referral to an IJ Lacking Time and Place Information
Denying the petition for review, the court held that an IJ is not deprived of jurisdiction under 8 CFR §1003.14 over removal proceedings commenced by a Notice of Referral to an IJ that lacks time and place information. (Mejia Romero v. Att’y Gen., 5/5/21)
CA3 Finds That Conviction for Second-Degree Robbery in New Jersey Is an Aggravated Felony Theft Offense
The court held that the petitioner’s 2000 conviction for second-degree robbery in New Jersey constituted an aggravated felony theft offense under INA §101(a)(43)(G), and thus found that the petitioner was ineligible for asylum and withholding of removal. (K.A. v. Att’y Gen., 5/4/21)
CA9 Holds That Petitioner’s Asylum Application Was Abandoned Based on Her Failure to Submit Required Biometrics
The court upheld the BIA and IJ’s conclusion that the petitioner’s application for asylum and related relief had been abandoned under 8 CFR §1003.47(c) based on her failure to submit biometrics or establish good cause for her failure to do so. (Gonzalez-Veliz v. Garland, 5/4/21)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief Arguing Iowa Theft Statute Is Indivisible
AILA and partners submitted a brief responding to BIA’s amicus invitation on the divisibility of Iowa’s theft statute. The brief argues that Iowa Code §714.1 is a single offense, and, therefore, indivisible, and highlights the categorical approach’s demand for certainty in the divisibility analysis.
ICE ERO Northern Florida NGO Contact Sheet - Tallahassee (May 2021)
ICE ERO Tallahassee contact information for Northern Florida NGOs for Non-Detained Unit and Alternatives to Detention as of May 2021.
ICE ERO Northern Florida NGO Contact Sheet - Jacksonville (May 2021)
ICE ERO Jacksonville contact information for Northern Florida NGOs for Detained Case Management, Non-Detained Case Management, and Alternatives to Detention as of May 2021.
DHS OIG Finds Violations of ICE Detention Standards at Pulaski County Jail
DHS OIG identified several violations of ICE detention standards at the Pulaski County Jail. The jail did not enforce COVID-19 precautions, which may have resulted in repeated transmissions at the facility, and did not meet standards for medical care, segregation, or detainee communication.
SCOTUS Rules NTA Sufficient to Trigger the Stop-Time Rule Must Be a Single Document
The Supreme Court held that a notice to appear (NTA) sufficient to trigger the IIRIRA’s stop-time rule is a single document containing all the information about an individual’s removal hearing. (Niz-Chavez v. Garland, 4/29/21)
Members of Congress Send Letter Supporting Funding for Providing Legal Representation to Individuals in Removal Proceedings
Forty-eight House representatives, led by Congresswoman Norma Torres (D-CA), sent a letter to the House Committee on Appropriations to support funding to expand federal programs that provide legal representation for individuals facing federal immigration court removal proceedings.
CA4 Says Petitioner Failed to Exhaust Argument That Pardoned Offenses Do Not Qualify as Convictions Under the INA
Where the petitioner had been pardoned by the state of Georgia for drug and firearm offenses after DHS had sought to remove him based on his convictions, the court held that he did not exhaust his argument that pardoned offenses do not qualify as convictions. (Tetteh v. Garland, 4/27/21)
ICE Acting Director and CBP Acting Commissioner Issue Memo on Civil Immigration Enforcement Actions In or Near Courthouses
ICE Acting Director Tae Johnson and Acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller issued a memo to ICE and CBP personnel pertaining to the limited circumstances in which civil immigration enforcement actions may be carried out in or near a courthouse. This policy supersedes an ICE directive issued in 2018.
EOIR 60-Day Notice and Request for Comment on Proposed Revisions to Form EOIR-26A
EOIR 60-day notice and request for comment on proposed revisions to Form EOIR-26A, Fee Waiver Request. Please see editor’s note regarding comment period end date. (86 FR 22266, 4/27/21)
ICE 60-Day Notice and Request for Comments on New “Flight Manifest/Billing Agreement”
ICE 60-day notice and request for comment on a new information collection titled “Flight Manifest/Billing Agreement,” which will be used to confirm Space Available passengers on any ICE-chartered flight and to bill for their airfare. Comments are due 6/28/21. (86 FR 22246, 4/27/21)
ICE Rescinds Civil Penalties for Failure to Depart
DHS announced that ICE has rescinded two delegation orders related to the collection of civil financial penalties for noncitizens who fail to depart the United States. ICE had initiated enforcement of civil penalties in 2018; as of January 20, 2021, ICE ceased issuing these fines.
CA2 Holds That Conviction for Second-Degree Assault in New York Is a Crime of Violence
Denying the petition for review, the court held that a conviction for second-degree assault under New York Penal Law §120.05(1) is a crime of violence as defined in 18 USC §16(a). (Thompson v. Garland, 4/22/21)
DOJ OIG Releases Limited-Scope Review of EOIR’s Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic
DOJ OIG reviewed EOIR’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and found various factors limited the efficacy of EOIR’s actions to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 during immigration proceedings. DOJ OIG identified several shortcomings in EOIR’s decisions and practices that hindered its pandemic response.
ICE ERO/AILA South Florida Liaison Meeting Minutes (4/22/21)
Minutes from the South Florida Chapter’s meeting with the ICE ERO office.
AILA Submits Amicus Brief on Oregon’s First-Degree Burglary Statute
AILA submitted a brief arguing Oregon’s first-degree burglary statute, ORS §164.225(1), is overbroad because it criminalizes entry of a non-dwelling with a firearm or with burglary tools and criminalizes a person’s entry on curtilage, and that for convictions before 2020, the offense is indivisible.
How the Trump Administration Broke the Immigration Court System
In just four years, the Trump administration implemented radical changes that fundamentally compromised the integrity of the immigration courts and their ability to ensure fairness and impartiality. This page provides a record of the changes made to the court system under the administration.
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief Arguing That the BIA’s Narrow Reading of the Nexus Requirement Restricts Meritorious Claims Brought by Transgend
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief urging the Ninth Circuit to vacate the BIA’s decision to deny a transgender Mexican woman asylum and withholding, arguing that the BIA’s too-narrow nexus requirement, left-standing, will drastically restrict meritorious claims brought by transgender women.