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
DHS Issues Fact Sheet on Zero Tolerance Immigration Prosecutions and Families
On 6/15/18, DHS issued a fact sheet regarding the treatment of families under DOJ’s “zero tolerance” policy at the border, with information on the apprehension, prosecution, and removal processes and care for children and communication with families.
DHS Publishes FAQs on Zero Tolerance Immigration Prosecutions and Families
On 6/15/18, DHS published answers to frequently asked questions about family separation at the border, including what happens to the children during and after criminal prosecution of their parents or legal guardians and how parents or legal guardians can communicate with their children.
DHS and HHS Provide Handout on Next Steps for Families in DHS Custody
On 6/15/18, DHS and HHS provided an informational handout in English and Spanish for families taken into DHS custody for suspected illegal entry. The handout outlines what will happen to children while parents or legal guardians are prosecuted.
AILA: Once Again, Congress Holds DREAMers Hostage
As Congress gears up to vote on two immigration bills next week, AILA President Anastasia Tonello and Executive Director Ben Johnson raise serious concerns about the provisions which would, among other things, severely cut legal immigration, undermine vital protections for vulnerable populations.
ICE’s OPLA Provides List of Institutional Hearing Program Facilities
ICE’s Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) provided AILA members with a list, current as of 6/15/18, of institutions with existing or pending Institutional Hearing Program (IHP) programs.
ICE Announces Honduran National Sentenced for Assault on ICE Officer
ICE stated that a Honduran national was sentenced to 364 days in federal custody after pleading guilty to one count of assault on a law enforcement officer in U.S. District Court in White Plains, NY. As he was being escorted to an ICE vehicle, Cruz-Garcia bit the arm of an ERO deportation officer.
Former IJ Jeffrey S. Chase Responds to Matter of A-B- in Blog Post
Former immigration judge (IJ) Jeffrey S. Chase published a blog post, Women Need Not Apply, about the Attorney General’s Decision in Matter of A-B-, calling it “shockingly tone deaf” and discussing how it will influence IJs future decisions in asylum cases involving domestic violence.
Attorney General Sessions Addresses Recent Criticisms of Zero Tolerance By Church Leaders
Attorney General Jeff Sessions addressed criticisms of the zero-tolerance policy at the southwest border by church leaders, claiming “that if the adults go to one of our many ports of entry to claim asylum, they are not prosecuted and the family stays intact pending the legal process.”
The Council and ACLU Provide Practice Advisory on Administrative Closure Post-Castro-Tum
The American Immigration Council and ACLU published a practice advisory on the impact of Matter of Castro-Tum, with arguments noncitizens can use in support of administrative closure of their cases and alternative mechanisms to dispose of or hold in abeyance proceedings in appropriate cases.
TRAC Finds ICE Apprehensions Are Half the Levels of Five Years Ago
TRAC reports, while ICE administrative arrests are up compared to final two years of Obama administration, these “interior” apprehensions are half the levels of five years ago when Secure Communities held sway. ICE apprehensions appear to have stabilized after an initial jump under President Trump.
Statement of Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program on Matter of A-B- Issued by Attorney General Sessions on June 11
Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program release statement in response to the Attorney General’s decision in Matter of A-B-, calling it “deeply flawed” and an effort to “set back the clock on decades of development of the law to provide protection to women.”
Vox Obtains USCIS Interim Guidance on Matter of A-B-
Vox obtained an email written by John L. Lafferty, Chief of USCIS’s Asylum Division, with interim guidance regarding the Attorney General’s 6/11/18 decision in Matter of A-B-, as well as the Office of Chief Counsel’s summary of the decision.
ABA Sends Letter to DOJ and DHS Expressing Strong Opposition to Family Separation
The American Bar Association President sent a letter to DOJ and DHS to express strong opposition to the drastic increase in the separation of children from their parents at the southern border noting that enforcement actions cannot be used as justification to affect international family separation.
CA9 Vacates BIA’s Decision in Matter of G-G-S-
The court vacated Matter of G-G-S-, holding that its finding that an applicant’s mental health is not a factor to be considered in a “particularly serious crime” analysis was not entitled to Chevron deference. (Gomez-Sanchez v. Sessions, 4/6/18, amended 6/12/18)
GAO Issues Report on Initial Immigration-Related Executive Order Actions and Resource Implications
The GAO issued a report reviewing agencies’ implementation of the January and March 2017 Executive Orders related to border security and immigration (EO 13767, 13768, and 13780).
CA6 Declines Jurisdiction to Review Changed Country Condition Challenge for Chaldean Iraqi Christian
The court denied the petition for review, finding that the motion to reopen CAT claim was barred. Even if BIA erred in concluding that the exception does not apply to CAT, its alternative holding of a lack of a prima facia case was dispositive. (Shabo v. Sessions, 6/11/18)
CA9 Considers Both Charging Document and Statute in Aggravated Felony Analysis
Declining to review BIA’s denial of cancellation application, court ruled that guilty plea to charge of violating Washington child assault statute “with sexual motivation” brings conviction within definition of federal offense of sexual abuse of minor. (Quintero-Cisneros v. Sessions, 6/11/18)
CA8 Rejects Gang Murder Witness’ Purported Social Group
The court upheld the BIA’s finding that “former taxi drivers from Quezaltepeque who have witnessed a gang murder” was not socially distinct and thus could not qualify as “particular social group.” (Miranda v. Sessions, 6/11/18)
EOIR Releases Procedures for Adjudicating Non-LPR Cancellation of Removal
Obtained via FOIA by Hoppock Law Firm, EOIR released a document from the 2018 Legal Training Program containing procedures for immigration judges to adjudicate non-LPR cancellation of removal in light of the cap on non-LPR cancellation. Special thanks to Matthew Hoppock.
EOIR Releases Training Materials on Evidentiary Challenges for Appellate Adjudication in the Digital Age
Obtained via FOIA by Hoppock Law Firm, EOIR released a handout on evidentiary challenges for appellate adjudication in the digital age from the 2018 Legal Training Program for immigration judges. Special thanks to Matthew Hoppock.
Attorney General Narrows Criteria for Asylum Seekers
In a case he referred to himself, Attorney General Jeff Sessions narrowed the criteria for demonstrating membership in a particular social group and overruled Matter of A-R-C-G-. Matter of A-B-, 27 I&N Dec. 316 (A.G. 2018)
Retired IJs and Former Members of the BIA Issue Statement in Response to Matter of A-B-
On June 11, 2018, retired immigration judges (IJs) and former members of the BIA issued a statement in response to the Attorney General’s decision in Matter of A-B-. The statement characterizes the decision as “an affront to the rule of law.”
Attorney General Pushes Immigration Judges to Deny Asylum to Victims of Violence
AILA responds to the Attorney General's precedent decision in which he vacated the BIA decision in Matter of A- B and announced that in his view, domestic violence victims and other victims of crimes perpetrated by private, non-government actors do not generally qualify for asylum.
Attorney General Delivers Remarks to EOIR Legal Training Program
AG Jeff Sessions delivered remarks on 6/11/18 to the EOIR Legal Training Program, discussing the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy and immigration judge case quotas, alleging abuse of the asylum system, and announcing plans to issue a decision today to “restore sound principles of asylum.”
EOIR Memo on Definitions and Use of Adjournment, Call-Up, and Case Identification Codes
On 6/8/18, EOIR issued Operating Policies and Procedure Memorandum (OPPM) 18-02, Definitions and Use of Adjournment, Call-up, and Case Identification Codes, which sets forth updated codes used to track the case hearing process, is effective immediately, and rescinds OPPM 17-02.