Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0
The U.S. immigration court system plays a critical role in upholding due process and ensuring fair hearings for individuals facing deportation. However, since January 20, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has implemented significant changes that challenge the structural integrity of these courts. This page aims to provide up-to-date information on the policy and legal shifts affecting the U.S. immigration court system.
Latest Updates
Updates from EOIR
Browse the Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0 collection
CA11 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Ethnic Tamil Petitioner Who Alleged Persecution by Sri Lankan Army
The court found that both the BIA and the IJ had explicitly considered whether the petitioner’s Tamil ethnicity or his imputed political opinion could have been one central reason for his alleged persecution by the Sri Lankan army. (Lingeswaran v. Att’y Gen., 8/13/20)
CAP Publishes Report on Restoring Integrity and Independence at DOJ
The Center for American Progress issued a report on restoring integrity and independence at DOJ, including restoring fairness in immigration proceedings. The report calls attention to DOJ’s interference with immigration judges’ independence and the issuance of legal opinions reversing settled law.
AILA, the Council, and Partners Submit Amicus Brief to SCOTUS on Two-Step Notice Process in Niz-Chavez v. Barr
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief to SCOTUS in Niz-Chavez v. Barr, arguing that the government’s two-step notice practice distorts the congressional scheme and undermines fundamental fairness. The brief includes examples of DHS’s use of fake dates which has led to chaos in courts.
Featured Issue: The Pereira Ruling and Resulting Fake NTAs
Per the decision in Pereira v. Session, individuals must be served with a notice to appear that specifies the time and place at which removal hearings will be held. This page tracks government efforts to comply with the ruling, court decisions, attorney and media resources, and more.
ICE Releases FAQs on Facilitating Return for Lawfully Removed Individuals
ICE released FAQs on its ICE Policy Directive Number 11061.1, Facilitating the Return to the United States of Certain Lawfully Removed Aliens.
CA9 Says Attempting to Communicate with a Child with Intent to Commit Lewd or Lascivious Acts upon Them in California Is a CIMT
Denying the petition for review, the court held that, under California law, attempting to communicate with a child with the intent to commit lewd or lascivious acts upon that child categorically constitutes a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). (Syed v. Barr, 8/12/20)
CA8 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Salvadoran Woman Who Feared Persecution by MS-13 Gang Members
The court held that the BIA did not err by concluding that the petitioner’s proposed social group—membership in her family—was not cognizable, finding that the petitioner’s financial resources was the central reason for her persecution by members of the MS-13 gang. (Fuentes v. Barr, 8/12/20)
CA7 Finds No Abuse of Discretion in BIA’s Denial of Guatemalan Single Mother’s Motions to Reopen and Reconsider
The court held that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying petitioner’s motions to reopen and reconsider, finding that she had rehashed the same arguments already considered, and that additional information submitted offered no new material evidence. (Lopez-Garcia v. Barr, 8/11/20)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief on the Reinterpretation of the INA in Matter of Thomas and Matter of Thompson
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief in the Seventh Circuit requesting the court to reject the Attorney General’s reinterpretation of the INA in Matter of Thomas and Matter of Thompson, which violates congressional intent to give full legal effect to state court modification orders.
CA9 Denies Qualified Immunity to Montana Judge and Sheriff’s Deputy over Undocumented Immigrant’s Courthouse Arrest
In an action alleging that an undocumented immigrant’s Fourth Amendment rights were violated when he was arrested in a Montana courthouse, the court affirmed the denial of qualified immunity to the defendants, a local judge and sheriff’s deputy. (Reynaga Hernandez v. Skinner, et al., 8/10/20)
CA6 Holds It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Motion to Reopen Based on Exceptional Circumstances
The court dismissed the petition for review for lack of jurisdiction, finding that the petitioner—who alleged that confusion about his hearing date constituted an exceptional situation—had failed to administratively exhaust the claims he raised in his petition. (Cuevas-Nuno v. Barr, 8/7/20)
EOIR Announces Three New Appellate Immigration Judges
EOIR announced the appointment of Michael P. Baird, Sunita B. Mahtabfar, and Sirce E. Owen as appellate immigration judges in EOIR's Board of Immigration Appeals. Notice includes the judges' biographical information.
EOIR To Resume Hearings in Non-Detained Cases at the Omaha Immigration Court
EOIR announced it will resume non-detained individual (merits) hearings and master calendar dockets involving relatively small numbers of respondents at the Omaha Immigration Court on August 10, 2020. The option to file by email at this court will end on October 10, 2020.
EOIR to Relocate the Seattle Immigration Court
EOIR announced that the Seattle Immigration Court will close on 8/13/20 to prepare for relocation. Detained hearings are expected to resume at the new location on 8/17/20; non-detained hearings remain postponed. Notice includes the court's new location, hours of operation, and contact information.
CA9 Reaffirms That BIA Must Analyze Cognizability of Particular Social Groups on a Case-by-Case Basis
The court held that the BIA had misapplied Matter of A-B-, as well as past precedent, in concluding that the petitioner’s proposed social group comprised of “indigenous women in Guatemala who are unable to leave their relationship” was not cognizable. (Diaz-Reynoso v. Barr, 8/7/20)
CA9 Remands Asylum Claim of Nicaraguan Petitioner Who Suffered Frequent and Severe Abuse by Domestic Partner
Granting the petition for review, the court held that substantial evidence did not support the BIA’s conclusion that petitioner had failed to establish the Nicaraguan government was unable or unwilling to protect her from persecution by her domestic partner. (Davila v. Barr, 8/7/20)
Sometimes You Just Have to Take ‘Em to Court
AILA First Vice President Jeremy McKinney describes his first foray into litigation, and what tools and resources can help AILA members litigate and win cases, writing that litigation “can benefit your clients, it can benefit the immigration bar, and ultimately, it can benefit everyone.“
CA9 Says “Obstruction of Justice” Under INA §101(a)(43)(S) Unambiguously Requires a Nexus to Ongoing or Pending Proceedings
Granting the petition for review, the court held that INA §101(a)(43)(S), which describes an aggravated felony offense relating to obstruction of justice, unambiguously requires a nexus to an ongoing or pending proceeding or investigation. (Valenzuela Gallardo v. Barr, 8/6/20)
NAIJ Files Lawsuit Challenging Unconstitutional Prior Restraint on the Speech of Immigration Judges
On 7/1/20, the Knight Institute filed a complaint on behalf of NAIJ challenging EOIR policies that impose a prior restraint on the speech of immigration judges. On 8/6/20, the court held that it lacked jurisdiction over NAIJ's claims and accordingly denied the motion for a preliminary injunction.
How To: Take Cases to Immigration Court
AILA Immigration Courts Conference Chair Michael Vastine shares insights on how AILA members can prepare themselves for immigration court, offering insights into the need to be “uniformly prepared, comprehensively trained, and conditioned to assertively and persuasively defend.“
CA1 Finds 98-Day Absence from United States Was Not “Brief, Casual, and Innocent” for Purposes of TPS
The court held that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in finding that the rescission of the petitioner’s removal order was incorrect, and that his 98-day absence from the United States barred him from Temporary Protected Status (TPS) relief. (Machado Sigaran v. Barr, 8/5/20)
BIA Issues Decision on Requirement to Notify Immigration Court of Correct Address
BIA ruled that reopening of proceedings to rescind removal based on improper notice is not warranted for an individual who was personally served with an NTA advising of requirement to notify the court of correct address and failed to do so. Matter of Nivelo Cardenas, 28 I&N Dec. 68 (BIA 2020)
FOIA Request Seeks Information on Immigration Court Operations During COVID-19 Pandemic
AILA, the American Immigration Council, and the NIPNLG filed a FOIA request to obtain documents related to EOIR’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The FOIA request seeks expedited processing for information that is integral to understanding immigration court operations during the health crisis.
New FOIA Request Filed to Force Agency to Release Immigration Court Operations Information on COVID-19 Pandemic
AILA, the Council, and NIPNLG filed a FOIA request to obtain documents related to EOIR’s response to COVID-19, noting that EOIR has repeatedly ignored requests for information and seeking expedited release of documents that are integral to understanding EOIR’s operations during the pandemic.
CA5 Says Petitioner’s Texas Conviction for Sexual Assault of a Child Was a “Crime of Child Abuse”
The court held that the petitioner’s conviction for sexual assault of a child under Texas Penal Code section 22.011(a)(2) was a categorical match to a “crime of child abuse” as defined by the BIA, rendering him removable under INA §237(a)(2)(E)(i). (Garcia v. Barr, 8/4/20)