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 Says 5-Year Limitation under INA §246 Does Not Apply to Removal Proceedings
The court found that INA §246, limiting rescission of an erroneously granted adjustment of status to the five year period after adjustment is granted, applies only to rescission and not to the initiation of removal proceedings. (Alhuay v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 10/26/11)
DHS Secretary Testimony before House on DHS Programs of Interest
DHS Secretary Napolitano’s 10/26/11 testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, including updates on worksite enforcement, E-Verify, Secure Communities, prosecutorial discretion, border security, and human trafficking and human smuggling investigations.
CA3 on the Meaning of “Has Committed” under the Stop-Time Rule
The court found that “has committed” in INA §240A(d)(1)(B) means the stop-time rule is triggered by conduct occurring on a particular date, or conduct that runs up to the date when the seventh year of residency ends. (Santos-Reyes v. Att’y Gen. of the U.S., 10/26/11)
AILA/USCIS Field Operations Liaison Q&As (10/25/11)
Official minutes of the 10/25/11, AILA liaison meeting with USCIS Field Operations. Topics include AOS for IRs under VWP, I-551 stamps, I-751s, I-829s, biometrics and fingerprinting, removal proceedings, I-131s, MTRs, 204(l), AR-11s, I-601s, and more.
CA9 Affirms Dismissal of District Court Action in Reinstatement Case
The court upheld the finding that Duran Gonzales II applies retroactively and that Plaintiffs are ineligible for I-212 waivers, and affirmed the denial of Plaintiff’s motion to amend the class and file an amended complaint. (Duran Gonzales v. DHS, 10/25/11)
CA7 Finds Counsel Erred in Conceding to JRAD’s Invalidity
The court found that the JRAD was valid because although it was entered outside the 30-day post-sentencing window, the judge timely announced her intent to consider a JRAD and continued the case for that purpose. (Solis-Chavez v. Holder, 10/25/11)
CA1 Upholds Denial of Roma Asylum Claim Based on Inconsistent Testimony
The court found although the mistreatment described by Petitioner was plausible, and the tensions in his testimony could be resolved either way, the IJ’s unwillingness to accept the key testimony had some basis in the record. (Stanciu v. Holder, 10/25/11)
ICE Memo on Enforcement Actions At or Focused on Sensitive Locations
ICE policy memo 10029.2 dated 10/24/11 on ICE policies regarding certain enforcement actions by ICE officers and agents at or focused on sensitive locations such as schools and churches.
CA9 Dismisses Petition; Discusses Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies
The court found that Petitioner did not exhaust his administrative remedies in challenging the IJ’s ruling that he committed a particularly serious crime where his arguments to the BIA centered on whether he had a well-founded fear. (Ardsi v. Holder, 10/24/11)
BIA Reverses Adverse Credibility in Sexual Orientation Withholding/CAT Claim from Mexico
The BIA reversed the IJ’s adverse credibility finding, holding that the respondent’s mistreatment constitutes past persecution on account of a protected ground, and sustained the appeal for withholding of removal and CAT. Courtesy of Edgardo Quintanilla.
CRCL October 2011 Newsletter
The DHS Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) October 2011 newsletter includes a guest message about the Blue Campaign, information and a reflection about the expansion of CRCL community engagements in 2011, the release of its 2010 annual report, and more.
CRS Report on Interior Immigration Enforcement
A 10/21/11 Congressional Research Service (CRS) report on DHS's interior immigration enforcement, including the Criminal Alien Program, Secure Communities, the 287(g) program, and the National Fugitive Operations Program.
DHS Presentation on Improving Docket Efficiency and the Roles of USCIS, ICE, and EOIR
A DHS PowerPoint presentation covering issues related to EOIR docket efficiency, and attempts to resolve the problems of high-volume caseloads through inter-agency partnerships. Presented at the 2011 CIS Ombudsman’s First Annual Conference.
PowerPoint Presentations from Ombudsman’s Office First Annual Conference
PowerPoint presentations from the 10/20/11 First Annual Conference of the Ombudsman's Office. Invitation and agenda are also included.
Challenges and Practice Tips on Waivers of Inadmissibility
A PowerPoint presentation describing current standards and processes for the adjudication of waivers of inadmissibility, including the legal requirements, as well as challenges and tips for practitioners. Presented at the 2011 CIS Ombudsman’s First Annual Conference.
CA3 Remands for BIA to Consider Change in Power in Guinea
Declining to take judicial notice of the change in power in Guinea, the court remanded the case to the BIA to consider the possible effect of the change in government on Petitioner’s claims for relief. (Nbaye v. Att’y Gen. of the U.S., 10/20/11)
BIA on Burden of Proof and Returning LPRs
The BIA held that to establish that a returning LPR is to be treated as an applicant for admission, the government has the burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that a §101(a)(13)(C) exceptions applies. Matter of Rivens, 25 I&N Dec. 623 (BIA 2011)
DHS Secretary Testimony Before Senate on DHS Mission and Programs
DHS Secretary Napolitano’s 10/19/11 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, including updates on anti-terrorism efforts, Secure Communities, prosecutorial discretion, worksite enforcement, E-Verify, border security, and visa overstay identification.
AILA Files Amicus Brief in Domestic Violence/Social Group Asylum Case
AILA amicus brief arguing that domestic violence may be persecution perpetrated because of a woman's gender, an immutable characteristic that can define a particular social group. Amicus urges the Board to issue a decision recognizing a PSG defined based on gender per se.
AAO Sustains I-601 Appeal for Chinese Spouse of USC
AAO concluded that the cumulative effect of the emotional, psychological, medical, and financial hardships that the applicant’s USC husband would suffer without his wife in the U.S. rose to the level of extreme. Courtesy of Alan Lee.
ICE Deportations Show Need to Better Implement Priorities
The announcement from ICE indicating FY2011 deportation statistics underscores the need for prosecutorial discretion to be utilized on a wider scale. AILA President Eleanor Pelta issues her comments.
ICE Releases Year-End FY2011 Removal Numbers
ICE news release announcing that in FY2011, the agency removed 396,906 individuals. Of the total, nearly 55 percent of those removed were convicted of felonies or misdemeanors. According to the announcement, 90 percent of all ICE’s removals fell into a priority category.
CA10 on “Illegal Re-entry” for Purposes of Reinstatement of Removal
The court held that where Petitioner was waived through at the border one month after her removal from the U.S., she “re-enter[ed] the United States illegally” for purposes of reinstatement of removal under INA §241(a)(5). (Cordova-Soto v. Holder, 10/17/11)
BIA Remands Mali FGM Asylum Claim
The BIA found exceptional circumstances to permit respondent’s late-filed asylum application, reversed the IJ’s finding that DHS rebutted the well-founded fear presumption, and found that the IJ failed to follow Matter of A-T-. Courtesy of Geoffrey A. Hoffman.
Frontline Presents Lost in Detention on PBS
Frontline’s presentation of Lost in Detention, an investigative report that examines controversial aspects of the Obama administration’s enforcement policies, and explores the world of immigration detention, which aired on 10/18/11, on PBS.