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
AILA: Massive Raid Adds to Migrant Fears, Endangers Due Process
On August 7, 2019, the administration executed a massive single-state worksite enforcement raid; AILA Executive Director Ben Johnson noted, “This raid was launched with no regard for the fundamental principles of due process that are the foundation of the American justice system.”
DOJ Announces Certain Previously Detained Noncitizens with Small Children Were Released
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Mississippi announced that following ICE's enforcement action on 8/7/19 in Mississippi, certain noncitizens with small children were released on humanitarian grounds.
BIA Holds Florida Statute Not Sexual Abuse of a Minor or a Crime of Child Abuse
Unpublished BIA decision holds that traveling to seduce/solicit/entice a child to commit a sex act under Fla. Stat. 847.0135(4)(a) is not sexual abuse of a minor or a crime of child abuse. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Mesidor, 8/8/19)
BIA Reverses Denial of Continuance Due to Withdrawal of Prior Attorney
Unpublished BIA decision holds IJ should have continued proceedings where respondent was not served with his prior attorney’s motion to withdraw or the decision granting the motion nine days prior to the individual hearing. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Cisse, 8/7/19)
Practice Alert: U Visas — Updated Guide for Law Enforcement Certifiers and New Directive on Stay Requests
This practice alert provides information on the updated U visa guide for law enforcement certifiers and on the new ICE directive regarding requests for stays of removal for U visa petitioners.
El Paso Immigration Collaborative (EPIC) Seeks to Change the Asylum Landscape for Detained Immigrants
The Immigration Justice Campaign, along with local and national partners, launched the El Paso Immigration Collaborative (EPIC). EPIC seeks to increase legal representation for detained immigrants around El Paso and promote oversight of the immigration courts and detention centers in the region.
CA6 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Former Guatemalan Taxi Driver Who Was Threatened by Gangs
The court concluded that the BIA did not err in finding that the petitioner, a taxi driver who lived in a poppy-producing region of Guatemala and who had been threatened by gang members, had failed to articulate a particular social group. (Gonzalez-De Leon v. Barr, 8/5/19)
CA11 Remands Asylum Claims of Pakistani Petitioner Who Practices Ahmadiyya Islam
The court granted the petition for review of the BIA’s denial of asylum to the Pakistani petitioner, a practitioner of Ahmadiyya Islam, finding that the BIA did not afford the case reasoned consideration and ignored highly relevant evidence of past persecution. (Ali v. Att’y Gen., 8/5/19)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief on Judicial Alteration of a Criminal Conviction or Sentence
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief arguing that the attorney general's invitation is overbroad and that any new rule must be limited to the particularities of Georgia's sentencing law. Matter of Thomas and Matter of Thompson, 27 I&N Dec. 556 (A.G. 2019)
ICE FAQs on Revised Guidance on Stay of Removal Request Reviews for U Visa Petitioners
ICE provides FAQs on ICE Directive 11005.2, which revises prior guidance from 2009 on stay of removal request reviews for U visa petitioners to allow ICE to use its discretion when determining whether to grant a stay of removal request based on the totality of circumstances.
CA9 Says Petitioner’s Oregon Conviction for Strangulation Is Categorically a Crime of Violence
The court held that the petitioner’s conviction in Oregon for strangulation was categorically a crime of violence aggravated felony that rendered him removable and ineligible for asylum. (Flores-Vega v. Barr, 8/2/19)
CA8 Says Iowa Forgery Conviction Is an Aggravated Felony
The court held that the BIA did not err in concluding that the petitioner’s Iowa forgery conviction constituted an aggravated felony, and found that DHS did not violate the petitioner’s due process rights. (Salazar v. Barr, 8/1/19)
CA3 Remands Where Petitioners Contend Evidence Obtained from Traffic Stop Violated Their Fourth Amendment Rights
The court vacated the order denying petitioners’ motion for suppression of evidence that was obtained as a result of a traffic stop by a Pennsylvania state trooper, holding that the petitioners had identified a possible egregious Fourth Amendment violation. (Yoc-Us v. Att’y Gen., 7/31/19)
CA6 Says It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Untimely Challenge to Underlying Removal Order
The court held that it lacked jurisdiction to review the petitioner’s assertion that the immigration court did not have jurisdiction to issue the underlying removal order, finding that this challenge was time-barred pursuant to INA §242(b)(1). (Moreno-Martinez v. Barr, 7/31/19)
CA8 Finds IJ’s Adverse Credibility Finding Was Not Supported by Cogent Reasons
The court granted the petition for review and remanded for a new credibility determination, holding that the IJ’s adverse credibility finding with regard to the Chinese Christian petitioner was not supported by cogent reasons for disbelief. (Tian v. Barr, 7/30/19)
Immigration Court Finds Respondent’s Conviction for Malicious Destruction of Property Is Not a “Crime of Violence”
Unpublished BIA decision holds that respondent’s conviction for malicious destruction of property under Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law §6-301 is not a “crime of violence,” denied DHS’s motion to pretermit, and granted the respondent’s application for cancellation of removal. Courtesy of Eric Singer.
Sign-On Letter to DHS, USCIS, and DOD Requesting the Continuation of Military Parole in Place
On 7/30/19, 27 organizations joined AILA to send a letter to Acting DHS Secretary McAleenan, Acting USCIS Director Cuccinelli, and DOD Secretary Esper requesting that the administration continue parole in place (PIP) for military families.
District Court Orders ICE to Explain Why It Failed to Give Detained Immigrants Proper Notice of Their Custody Reviews
The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued an order requiring ICE to explain why the court should not find that the agency has unlawfully detained the 13 individuals identified in a recent detention report. (Calderon Jimenez et al. v. McAleenan, et al., 7/29/19)
Attorney General Overrules Portion of Matter of L-E-A- Relating to Particular Social Group
The Attorney General found that the BIA improperly recognized the respondent’s father’s immediate family as a particular social group. Decision notes that all cases inconsistent with this opinion are abrogated. Matter of L-E-A-, 27 I&N Dec. 581 (A.G. 2019)
AILA: AG’s Decision Ignores Precedent and Is the Latest Attempt to Restrict Asylum
AG Barr issued a decision in Matter of L-E-A- impacting how family membership could be considered in asylum proceedings. AILA Second VP Jeremy McKinney noted: “Courts, like the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, have voluminous case law directly contradicting the Attorney General’s decision.”
Reuters Obtains Guidance Given to IJs on Docketing of Family Unit Cases
Reuters obtained guidance given to immigration judges (IJs) on docketing of family unit cases that directs them to schedule the initial hearing in family unit cases within 30 days.
Forty-Two House Democrats Demand that DOJ Rescind New Plan to Eliminate In-Court Interpreters
On 7/26/19, 42 House Democrats sent a letter to Attorney General Barr demanding that DOJ immediately rescind its plan to end the use of in-court interpreters for noncitizens appearing at their initial immigration court hearing.
BIA Finds IJs Have Authority to Deny TPS Applications in the Exercise of Discretion
The BIA dismissed the appeal, finding that immigration judges (IJs) have the authority to deny applications for temporary protected status (TPS) in the exercise of discretion. Matter of D-A-C- 27 I&N Dec. 575 (BIA 2019)
CA8 Finds Petitioner’s Conviction for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm in Minnesota Was a Particularly Serious Crime
The court found that the IJ and BIA did not err in concluding that the petitioner’s conviction for unlawful possession of a firearm in Minnesota was a particularly serious crime and that the petitioner was thus ineligible for withholding of removal. (Marambo v. Barr, 7/26/19)
CA3 Defers to BIA’s Finding That Stop-Time Rule Does Not Truncate Good Moral Character Window
The court deferred to the BIA’s interpretation that the stop-time rule does not apply to the time period during which a noncitizen must exhibit good moral character, and upheld the BIA’s denial of cancellation of removal to the petitioner. (Mejia-Castanon v. Att’y Gen., 7/25/19)