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
CA1 Issues Final Judgment in 18-Year-Old Asylum Case
The court found authority to issue a final judgment in the asylum case of a former Peruvian military officer, noting that it explicitly retained jurisdiction over the case after remanding to the BIA in 2011. (Castaneda-Castillo v. Holder, 4/12/12)
BIA Finds IJ Should Have Granted Continuance
In an unpublished decision, the BIA held that the immigration judge should have granted the respondent’s request for a continuance in order to pursue a waiver petition under INA § 216(c)(4), and remanded the case for further proceedings. Courtesy of Fausto Falzone.
BIA on Refugees in Removal Proceedings
The BIA held that a refugee who has not adjusted status can be placed in removal proceedings without a prior inadmissibility determination by DHS, but that the charges of removability must be under INA § 237, not § 212. Matter of D-K-, 25 I&N Dec. 761 (BIA 2012)
AILA Files Amicus Brief in En Banc Rehearing of Garfias-Rodriguez
AILA amicus brief in Garfias-Rodriguez v. Holder, arguing that noncitizens who are inadmissible under INA §212(a)(9)(C)(i)(I) may seek adjustment of status under INA §245(i). AILA previously filed an amicus brief in support of the rehearing en banc.
DOJ Open Government Plan 2012’ Report
DOJ report on setting forth ongoing and anticipated efforts to increase openness including sections on FOIA, EOIR and outreach to minority and immigrant workers communities around the country.
New Jersey District Court on Mandatory Detention Under 236(c)
In an unpublished decision, the District of New Jersey granted the habeas petition and found that mandatory detention under INA § 236(c) does not apply where the noncitizen was taken into custody over 12 years after the statutory offense. Courtesy of Michael Z. Goldman. (X v. Elwood, 4/9/12)
BIA Finds Murder with No Intent to Kill is Aggravated Felony
The BIA held that a conviction for murder requiring a showing that the perpetrator acted with extreme recklessness or a malignant heart is an aggravated felony, notwithstanding that no intent to kill was established. Matter of M-W-, 25 I&N Dec. 748 (BIA 2012)
DHS OIG Report on the Effectiveness of Secure Communities
DHS OIG report assessing whether Secure Communities was effective in identifying noncitizens with criminal convictions, and whether ICE appropriately prioritized cases for removal action.
ICE Responds to Secure Communities Task Force Recommendations
ICE’s 4/27/12 response to a September 2011 Homeland Security Advisory Council’s Task Force on Secure Communities report, which recommended ways for ICE to improve the Secure Communities program.
Passover In The First Person
A version of this blog was originally posted on April 19, 2011 and on the Huffington Post This week Jews all over the world celebrate Passover. Extended families, friends and strangers gather together and relive the story of the Exodus from the bondage of the Pharaohs of Egypt. It is a holiday of fr
CA11 on Right to Confidentiality in Asylum Proceedings
The court affirmed the adverse credibility finding, and found the investigator’s disclosure of the petitioner’s name to a Ukrainian hospital administrator did not breach her right to confidentiality in the asylum process. (Lyashchynska v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 4/4/12)
AILA Comments on EOIR’s Recognition and Accreditation Program
AILA’s comments on the regulations governing the EOIR Recognition and Accreditation Program, encouraging EOIR to adopt additional safeguards to help strengthen the program and combat program-related fraud.
ICE Report on Deportation of Parents of U.S.-Born Citizens During FY2011
ICE semi-annual report on detailed evaluation of the process and required changes to begin tracking the deportation of people with U.S.-born children for the first half of FY2011.
CRCL Newsletter, April 2012
DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) January 2012 newsletter with information on LGBT equality, national detention standards and the new DHS Language Access Plan.
BIA Sua Sponte Reopens Proceedings Based on Inaccurate Admission
In an unpublished decision, the BIA sua sponte reopened proceedings based on exceptional circumstances, because the respondent admitted to two controlled substance convictions which did not exist during a hearing with his prior attorney. Courtesy of Charles Medina.
EOIR Provides Cost Saving Analysis on the Legal Orientation Program
EOIR provided a cost-saving analysis report on the Legal Orientation Program (LOP) from FY2009 through FY2011, finding that detained individuals’ participation in the LOP significantly reduced the length of their immigration court proceedings.
Additional Court Dockets Suspended for Prosecutorial Discretion Review
News release announcing that EOIR will suspend or partially suspend the non-detained docket in seven additional cities beginning in late April, in order to facilitate DHS’s review of pending removal cases for grants of prosecutorial discretion.
CA9 on Standard of Review for Particularly Serious Crime Determination
The court held that determining whether a crime is particularly serious for the purposes of a withholding claim is an inherently discretionary decision, and that they will review such decisions for abuse of discretion. (Arbid v. Holder, 4/3/12, amended 11/9/12)
IJ Grants Asylum to Salvadoran Youth Targeted for Gang Reprisal
The Immigration Judge found that the applicant had a well-founded fear of future persecution on account of his family ties, where the applicant’s father had been convicted of raping the sister of a gang member and the gang sought revenge. Courtesy of Nikki Mehrpoo Jacobson.
EOIR Swears in New Assistant Chief Immigration Judge
EOIR press release announcing that Attorney General Eric Holder appointed Christopher A. Santoro as a new assistant chief immigration judge during a swearing-in ceremony on 3/30/12.
Sign-On Letter to the White House Urging for PREA to Cover Immigration Detention Facilities
On 4/2/12, AILA joined immigration, labor, faith-based, community, and victim advocacy organizations in a sign-on letter to the White House urging for the implementation of the Prison Rape Elimination Act of 2003 (PREA) in immigration detention facilities.
Immigration Law Advisor, March 2012 (Vol. 6, No. 3)
Immigration Law Advisor, a legal publication from EOIR, with an article on the current framework for establishing the fact of conviction in light of Matter of J.R. Velasquez, as well as circuit court decisions for February 2012, and recent BIA precedent decisions.
CA1 Finds No Changed Country Conditions in Chinese Asylum Case
The court affirmed the BIA’s conclusion that reopening of the Chinese petitioner’s asylum case was unwarranted due to his failure to establish a change in circumstances or country conditions. (Chen v. Holder, 3/30/12)
BIA Remands Egyptian Asylum Case
In an unpublished decision, the Board reversed a decision denying asylum, noting that a persecutor “may have several reasons for harming a victim and proving the exact reason for the past or feared persecution may be impossible in some cases." Courtesy of David Cleveland.
CA4 on 212(h) Waiver Eligibility
The court found that an individual who adjusts to LPR status after entering the U.S. can seek a 212(h) waiver, reversing the BIA’s finding that a post-entry adjustment of status constituted an “admission” to the U.S. (Bracamontes v. Holder, 3/29/12).