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
CA8 Amends it Opinion in Ivanov, Finds IJ Abused Discretion in Granting MTR (Updated 5/31/07)
At the request of the government, the court amended its opinion but did not change the result. It found that evidence proffered in support of a motion to reopen must be material, unavailable and undiscoverable. (Ivanov v. Gonzales, 4/24/07)
CA7 Upholds IJ’s Asylum Denial and Finds Expert’s Testimony Speculative
CA7 upheld the adverse credibility finding based on inconsistencies between Petitioner’s testimony and a newspaper article that stated that he left Albania for economic reasons. It also found that an expert witness offered only generalized, speculative testimony. (Myslymi v. Gonzales, 2/9/07)
CA9 Upholds IJs Adverse Credibility Finding; Dissent Chastises Majority
The court upheld the IJ’s adverse credibility finding based on an inconsistency regarding a crucial date, the implausibility of Petitioner’s story and propensity for dishonesty. (Don v. Gonzales, 2/9/07)
BIA Addresses Effective Date of Child Status Protection Act
The BIA held that INA §201(f)(1) applies to an individual whose visa petition was approved before the August 6, 2002 effective date of CSPA, but the I-485 was filed after that date - such individual retains his status as a child. Matter of Avila-Perez, 24 I&N Dec. 78 (BIA 2007)
CA3 Holds “Crime of Violence” Has No Statutory Counterpart for §212(c) Relief
The court upheld Matter of Brieva, finding that Petitioner was not eligible for relief under former INA §212(c) because he was found removable for a “crime of violence” which has no statutory counterpart ground of exclusion. (Caroleo v. Gonzales, 2/7/07)
CA9 En Banc Court Upholds Validity of Reinstatement Regulations at 8 CFR §241.8
The en banc court reversed the 3-judge panel decision and held that 8 CFR §241.8, which delegates authority to reinstate prior removal orders to immigration officers, and does not require a hearing before an IJ, comports with due process. (Morales-Izquierdo v. Gonzales, 2/6/07)
CA9 Holds Res Judicata Bars Initiation of Second Removal Proceedings
The court held that the doctrine of res judicata bars the government from initiating a second deportation case on the basis of a charge that could have been brought in the first case when, due to a change in the law, the first case was dismissed. (Bravo-Pedroza v. Gonzales, 2/6/07)
CA9 Finds Petitioner Was Not Properly Served with Order to Show Cause (Updated 5/21/07)
CA9 held that the govt failed to show that Petitioner or a responsible person at his address signed the certified mail receipt for his order to show cause. Matter of Grijalva permits a presumption of effective service for hearing notices, not OSCs. (Chaidez v. Gonzales, 2/14/07)
CA7 Upholds Finding Due Process Not Violated; Posner Issues Scathing Dissent
The court acknowledged that the IJ conduct was hardly a model of patience and decorum, but held that the IJ’s approach did not impede Petitioner’s “reasonable opportunity” to be heard.(Apouviepseakoda v. Gonzales, 2/2/07)
Immigration Law Advisor, January 2007 (Vol. 1, No. 1)
The inaugural issue of Immigration Law Advisor, with an article on Lopez v. Gonzales, an article with a qualitative analysis of Board decisions, circuit court decisions for 2006, federal court activity and recent BIA decisions for January 2007, a legislative update, and a regulatory update.
BIA Holds Affluent Guatemalans Do Not Constitute a Particular Social Group
BIA discusses factors to be considered in determining whether a particular social group exists, and held that affluent Guatemalans do not constitute a particular social group. Matter of A-M-E & J-G-U-, 24 I&N Dec. 69 (BIA 2007)
CA6 Says Filing a Petition for Review Does Not Toll Motion to Reconsider Deadline
CA6 held that the filing a petition for review does not toll the 30-day deadline for motions to reconsider under INA §240(c)(6)(B). To hold otherwise, would make INA §242(b)(6), which requires consolidation of multiple petitions for review, devoid of meaning. (Randhawa v. Gonzales, 1/30/07)
CA2 Upholds Determination that Advance Parolee Is an “Arriving Alien”
The court held that Petitioner, who departed and reentered the U.S. on advance parole while his adjustment application was pending, was properly treated as an “arriving alien” in removal proceedings after his adjustment was denied. (Ibragimov v. Gonzales, 1/25/07)
BIA Addresses §237(a)(2)(B)(i) Applicability
The BIA held that the exception to deportability under INA §237(a)(2)(B)(i) does not apply to an alien convicted under a statute that has an element requiring that possession of the marijuana be in a prison or other correctional setting. Matter of Moncada-Servellon, 24 I&N Dec. 62 (BIA 2007)
CA7 Finds IJ Ignored Evidence that Motive for Persecution Was Religion
CA7 found that the IJ’s conclusion that Petitioner was not persecuted because of religion ignored the factual context in which the death threats and assaults occurred, and held that Petitioner, an Egyptian Coptic Christian, was persecuted because of his religion.(Boctor v. Gonzales, 1/24/07)
CA1 Finds No Well-Founded Fear, but Holds IJ Erred in Excluding Evidence
The court found that the IJ erred in rejecting two documents solely because they were not in conformity with the authentication regulation, where the regulation was not applicable because the documents were not official records. (Jiang v. Gonzales, 1/23/07)
CA5 Remands for Determination of Reliance on Continued Availability of §212(c) Relief
The court remanded the case to the BIA to determine whether Petitioner affirmatively decided to postpone her §212(c) application to increase her chances of success and therefore, reasonably relied on the continued availability of §212(c) relief. (Carranza-De Salinas v. Gonzales, 1/23/07)
CA9 Refuses to Equitably Toll the Filing Deadline for Untimely Motion to Reopen
The court found that Petitioner did not act diligently by delaying the filing of a motion to reopen until he had received the response to his request to join in the motion. The court held that equitable tolling of the deadline was not warranted. (Valeriano v. Gonzales, 1/23/07)
CA2 Finds No Abuse of Discretion in Refusal to Rescind In Absentia Order
The court found that Petitioner’s uncorroborated affidavit of non-receipt containing a material misstatement of fact was insufficient to overcome the presumption of receipt of his hearing notice. (Bhanot v. Chertoff, 1/22/07)
CA10 Overturns Adverse Credibility Finding in Mauritanian Asylum Claim
The court determined that it would only impute the IJ’s reasoning to the BIA if the BIA incorporated it expressly or by implication. The court held that the adverse credibility determination was not supported by substantial evidence. (Sarr v. Gonzales, 1/22/07)
CA7 Finds BIA Abused its Discretion in Denying MTR Ethiopian Asylum Case
The court found that the evidence submitted by Petitioner post dated his IJ hearing and the BIA’s ruling and was material to his claim. The court held that the BIA should have responded to the significant, material evidence submitted with his motion to reopen. (Kebe v. Gonzales, 1/19/07)
ICE Amends Regulations for Certain Detained Aliens Prior to Order of Removal
ICE final rule updates the list of countries at 8 C.F.R. 236.1(e), which requires immediate communication with consular or diplomatic officers when nationals of the listed countries are detained in the U.S. (72 FR 1923, 1/17/07)
Supreme Court Holds that “Theft Offense” Includes the Crime of “Aiding and Abetting”
The Supreme Court found that a person who aids or abets a theft falls within the scope of the generic definition of theft and may be removable for having been convicted of an aggravated felony. (Gonzales v. Duenas-Alvarez, 1/17/07)
Update on NSEERS Advocacy
Summary of recent advocacy efforts by community-based organizations to end Special Registration. Courtesy of the National Immigration Forum.
Aytes Memo on Adjustment by Arriving Aliens in Removal Proceedings
Memorandum from Michael Aytes, Associate Director, Domestic Operations, provides guidance on implementation of the interim rule (71 FR 27585, 5/12/06) on applications for adjustment of status by arriving aliens in removal proceedings.