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
BIA Rescinds In Absentia Order Over Signature on Return Receipt
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order of deportation because signature on return receipt for Order to Show Cause did not belong to respondent or a responsible person at his address. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Ramirez Flores, 6/16/20)
CA9 Finds “Wealthy Landowners” in Colombia Is Not a PSG
Denying the petition for review, the court held that the BIA had properly concluded that the petitioner’s proposed particular social group (PSG) of wealthy landowners in Colombia was not cognizable, because it lacked particularity and social distinction. (Cordoba v. Barr, 6/16/20)
AILA and Partners Urge DHS to End Destructive Policies That Threaten the Safety of Immigrant Children
On 6/16/20, AILA and partners sent a letter asking DHS to cease expulsions of unaccompanied children and asylum seekers at the southern border, stop deportation of unaccompanied children living within the U.S. interior without required court proceedings, and to release detained families together.
TRAC Says Public Should Not Rely on Accuracy of Immigration Court Records
TRAC received a letter from the EOIR director in response to reports of missing EOIR data. Per TRAC, “Instead of addressing the obvious serious data management problems at EOIR, Director McHenry denied there were any problems and attacked TRAC's motives for spreading … falsehoods about the agency.”
CA1 Finds Salvadoran Petitioner Was Denied Her Statutory Right to Counsel
The court concluded that the IJ had denied the Salvadoran petitioner her statutory right to be represented by the counsel of her choice, and found that the assistance of a lawyer likely would have affected the outcome of her removal proceedings. (Hernandez Lara v. Barr, 6/15/20)
AILA and Partners Send Letter to EOIR on Premature Decision to Resume the Non-Detained Docket
AILA, the Council, CLINIC, HRF, NIJC, and NIPNLG sent a letter to EOIR recommending that the overwhelming majority of non-detained hearings be postponed for the duration of the national public health emergency. Additional recommendations include a moratorium on the issuance of in absentia orders.
Practice Alert: ICE Forces Parents in Detention to Choose Between Indefinite Detention and Separation from Children
AILA issued a practice alert on reports that ICE asked immigrants detained in family detention centers to choose between being separated from their children and having the children being released or remaining in indefinite detention.
Joint EOIR and USCIS Proposed Rule on Procedures for Asylum, Withholding of Removal, and CAT Protection
Joint EOIR and USCIS proposed rule making multiple changes to the regulations governing the procedures for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). (85 FR 36264, 6/15/20)
BIA Rules on Motions to Reopen Based on Changed Country Conditions
The BIA ruled that to prevail on an MTR alleging changed country conditions, respondents must overcome any prior determinations of adverse credibility or show that the new claim is independent of the evidence that was previously found not credible. Matter of F-S-N-, 28 I&N Dec. 1 (BIA 2020)
EOIR Issues Memo Rescinding and Cancelling Outdated Operating Policies and Procedures Memoranda
EOIR issued a memo rescinding several Operating Policies and Procedures Memoranda (OPPM) that were issued a decade ago and have become outdated or unnecessary. These include OPPM 06-02 on delegation of signature authority, OPPM 08-02 on claims for compensatory time off for travel, and more.
DHS OIG Reports That CBP Struggled to Provide Adequate Detention Conditions During 2019 Migrant Surge
DHS OIG released a report stating that CBP struggled to provide adequate detention conditions during the 2019 migrant surge. The report notes that CBP did not meet standards for detainee care and struggled to limit detention to 72 hours or to control overcrowding to manage contagious illnesses.
DOJ’s Immigration Court Practice Manual (Updated on 6/11/20)
On June 11, 2020, the OCIJ updated its Immigration Court Practice Manual, a comprehensive guide on uniform procedures, recommendations, and requirements for practice before immigration courts.
EOIR Updates Guidance on Immigration Court Practices During the COVID-19 Pandemic
EOIR issued a policy memo updating its guidance regarding practices adopted by its adjudicatory components related to COVID-19. This policy memo is effective immediately and supersedes the March 18, 2020, policy memo on immigration court practices during the COVID-19 outbreak.
EOIR To Resume Hearings in Non-Detained Cases at the Honolulu Immigration Court
EOIR announced that it plans to resume individual (merits) non-detained hearings at the Honolulu Immigration Court on June 15, 2020. EOIR will also resume master calendar dockets involving relatively small number of respondents.
BIA Reopens Proceedings Sua Sponte Following Reentry on Advance Parole
Unpublished BIA decision reopens proceedings sua sponte for respondent from Haiti to adjust status through U.S. citizen wife following reentry under grant of advance parole. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Pierre, 6/11/20)
BIA Equitably Tolls MTR Deadline Following Vacatur of Convictions Due to Misconduct in State Drug Lab
Unpublished BIA decision equitably tolls MTR deadline and terminates proceedings against respondent whose convictions where vacated due to misconduct by a chemist working in the state drug lab. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Santiago, 6/10/20)
CA2 Remands CAT Claim of Petitioner Who Fled El Salvador After Threats from MS-13 Gang
The court held that the IJ erred as a matter of law in penalizing the petitioner for her prompt flight from El Salvador after members of the MS-13 gang threatened her, and thus remanded her Convention Against Torture (CAT) claim to the BIA. (Martinez De Artiga v. Barr, 6/10/20)
ACLU Files Lawsuit Challenging Border Closures During COVID-19 on Behalf of Honduran UAC Facing Imminent Removal
The ACLU and other advocates filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of the plaintiff, a 16-year-old Honduran unaccompanied child (UAC) facing imminent removal, challenging the government’s order restricting immigration at the border during COVID-19. (J.B.B.C. v. Wolf, et al., 6/9/20)
BIA Remands to Consider Administrative Closure for Provisional Waiver
Unpublished BIA decision remands for consideration of request for administrative closure in light of intervening decision in Zuniga Romero v. Barr (4th Cir. 2019), to seek provisional unlawful presence waiver. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Ventura Santizo, 6/9/20)
Practice Alert: Videos Replace Interpreters at Hearings
EOIR has begun replacing interpreters at master calendar hearings with prerecorded video advisals. AILA has obtained copies of these videos and is tracking the roll out of this program. If you have additional information, please contact AILA.
CA6 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Salvadoran Who Was Found to Be a UAC at Time of Entry
The court held that the IJ had properly exercised jurisdiction over the case of the petitioner, who had entered the United States when he was 18 years old and had been found by an immigration official to be an unaccompanied child (UAC) at the time of his entry. (Garcia v. Barr, 6/8/20)
CA5 Upholds BIA’s Denial of Asylum to Petitioner from Trinidad and Tobago Who Alleged Membership in Three PSGs
The court held that petitioner had failed to demonstrate a legal or constitutional error in BIA’s denial of his application for asylum based on membership in three alleged particular social groups (PSGs), including children unable to leave a family relationship. (Alexis v. Barr, 6/8/20)
CA9 Holds Petitioner’s Conviction for Being Under the Influence of Amphetamines in California Rendered Him Removable
The court held that a conviction for being under the influence of a controlled substance in violation of California Health and Safety Code §11550(a) is divisible with respect to controlled substance and thus the modified categorical approach applied and was satisfied. (Tejeda v. Barr, 6/8/20)
BIA Rescinds In Absentia Order Entered by Court Different Than That Listed on NTA
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order entered by Orlando immigration court where NTA indicated that hearing would be held in Miami. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Marrero Soca, 6/5/20)
CA11 Upholds Denial of Motion to Remand Based on Ineffective Assistance Where Petitioner Did Not Substantially Comply with Lozada
The court held that petitioner had failed to meet the three Lozada requirements for presenting an ineffective assistance of counsel claim, finding that his attorney lacked actual notice of allegations that his assistance had been ineffective. (Point Du Jour v. Att’y Gen., 6/4/20)