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 Applauds ICE for Progress on Immigration Case Review
AILA welcomes new guidance issued in a memo from ICE that outlines the process for reviewing pending and incoming immigration cases for their eligibility to apply prosecutorial discretion.
AILA/ICE Liaison Meeting Minutes (11/17/11)
AILA ICE Liaison Committee report from an 11/17/11 liaison meeting with ICE. Questions and answers address Matter of E-R-M-F-, Secure Communities, prosecutorial discretion, DUI and release determinations, stays of removal, post-order procedures, and more.
AILA/ICE Fall 2011 Liaison Meeting Minutes
AILA ICE Liaison Committee minutes from the fall 2011 liaison meetings with ICE. Questions and answers address Matter of E-R-M-F-, Secure Communities, prosecutorial discretion, DUI and release determinations, stays of removal, post-order procedures, and more.
AILA Letter to House Judiciary Committee on H.R. 3256
A 11/17/11 AILA letter to House Judiciary Committee expressing concern over H.R. 3256- Deport Convicted Foreign Criminals Act of 2011, which would damage the U.S. visa processing system and jeopardize U.S. businesses and communities.
EOIR Announces Appointment of Ana Landazabal Mann to BIA
EOIR press release announcing the appointment of Ana Landazabal Mann to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).
CA3 Finds IJ Failed to Act as Neutral Arbiter; Reverses Adverse Credibility
The court found that Petitioner’s due process rights were violated when government counsel was unprepared at the merits hearing and the IJ took over cross-examination and ceased functioning as a neutral arbiter. (Abulashvili v. Att’y Gen. of the U.S., 11/15/11)
EOIR Policy Memo on the Asylum Clock
An 11/15/11 memo from Brian M. O’Leary, Chief Immigration Judge, addressing asylum clock procedures, including stopping and starting the clock, adjournment codes, staff responsibilities, future hearing dates, treatment of cases on appeal or remand, and more.
DOJ Comment Request on Form EOIR-26
DOJ notice of a 60-day comment period on Form EOIR-26, Notice of Appeal from a Decision of an Immigration Judge. Comments due 1/17/12. (76 FR 70754, 11/15/11)
DOJ Comment Request on Forms EOIR 42A and 42B
DOJ notice of a 60-day comment period on Application for Cancellation of Removal for Certain Permanent Residents (42A) and Application for Cancellation of Removal and Adjustment of Status for Certain Nonpermanent Residents (42B). Comments due 1/17/12. (76 FR 70754, 11/15/11)
Additional Resources on AILA/AIC Report on Prosecutorial Discretion
Summary and additional resources on AILA/AIC report, Holding DHS Accountable on Prosecutorial Discretion, highlighting nationwide discrepancies in the exercise of prosecutorial discretion by DHS.
Prosecutorial Discretion – It isn’t that hard
Written by: Palma Yanni, AILA Media-Advocacy Committee On November 10, 2011, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the American Immigration Council (AIC) issued a report chronicling the implementation of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton's June 17, 2011
CA7 Says No §212(h) Waiver for Conspiracy to Submit False Immigration Documents
The court held that because a conviction for conspiracy to submit false immigration documents, 18 USC §1546, is grounds for removal under INA §237(a)(3), and not INA §237(a)(1), Petitioner is ineligible for a §237(a)(1)(H) waiver. (Gourche v. Holder, 11/9/11)
AILA/AIC Survey Findings on the Exercise of Prosecutorial Discretion
AILA and AIC released a report titled Holding DHS Accountable on Prosecutorial Discretion. AILA members responded to the joint survey with accounts of their interactions with ICE Field Offices and Offices of Chief Counsel regarding the use of prosecutorial discretion.
AILA CBP Liaison Q&As (11/9/11)
Approved AILA CBP Liaison Q&As discuss FOIA, TNs, adjudications, parole, K EADs, IVs, I-797s, Bs, I-192s, voluntary return, refugee/asylee, prioritization, and more. AILA Liaison seeks clarification from CBP on agenda items with ambiguous, missing, or incomplete answers.
BIA Says Rhode Island Solicitation of Assault Is an Aggravated Felony
The BIA held that solicitation of assault with a dangerous weapon, RI Gen. Laws §11-1-9, is an aggravated felony crime of violence, but is not an aggravated felony attempt or conspiracy offense under INA §101(a)(43)(U). Matter of Guerrero, 25 I&N Dec. 631 (BIA 2011)
AILA/AIC Survey Reveals ICE Officials’ Sporadic Exercise of Prosecutorial Discretion
A joint report released on 11/9/11 by AILA and AIC, "Holding DHS Accountable on Prosecutorial Discretion," highlights the discrepancies seen by immigration attorneys at all 28 ICE offices nationwide in regards to the exercise of prosecutorial discretion.
CA6 Stays Appeal Upon Discovery of Translation Error
The court found that a translation error in a medical document corroborating Petitioner’s injuries contributed significantly to the IJ’s adverse credibility finding, and stayed the appeal so that Petitioner could present the error to the BIA. (Sea v. Holder, 11/8/11)
CA3 Rejects “Social Visibility” and “Particularity” Concepts in Asylum
The court found that the addition of social visibility and particularity to the BIA’s social group definition is inconsistent with prior decisions and rejected it without a reason for adopting the requirements. (Valdiviezo-Galdamez v. Att’y Gen. of the U.S., 11/8/11)
AILA Calls USCIS NTA Guidance a Positive Step
AILA commends the new Policy Memorandum issued by USCIS on NTAs involving inadmissible and removable aliens and for its movement away from enforcement actions and back towards its original service-minded focus.
USCIS Performance Data Statistics on Various Form Types
USCIS performance data providing the total number of receipts and approvals, by quarter, for various applications and petition form types submitted to USCIS for adjudication for FY2011.
CA9 Refuses to Place Time Limitation on GMC for Registry
Though the registry statute, INA §249, does not specify a time period for good moral character, the court found that the IJ’s determination based on conduct stretching many years and leading up to the hearing was permissible. (Gutierrez v. Holder, 11/7/11)
CA7 Confirms Lack of Jurisdiction to Review GMC Determination
The court found that although good moral character is a statutory requirement for cancellation of removal, the decision whether an alien has such character involves the exercise of administrative discretion. (Portillo-Rendon v. Holder, 11/7/11)
USCIS Revises Guidance on the Referral of Cases and Issuance of NTAs in Cases Involving Inadmissible and Removable Individuals
USCIS 11/7/11 policy memo establishing new guidelines regarding the circumstances under which USCIS will issue an NTA, or refer a case to ICE for NTA issuance, in order to effectively handle cases involving public safety threats, criminals, and individuals engaged in fraud.
DHS Publishes Enforcement Integrated Database PIA Update
DHS Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) update for EID, addressing changes to the information electronically shared with Mexico for Mexican nationals who are being repatriated from the U.S. and who have been convicted of certain felonies, including date of birth rather than age.
Subpoena from House Subcommittee to Secretary Napolitano for ICE Records
A 11/4/11 subpoena from House Judiciary’s Subcommittee on Immigration Policy and Enforcement to DHS Secretary Napolitano requiring documents identifying individuals arrested by ICE but not subsequently detained or placed into removal proceedings.