Winning Strategies for BIA Appeals: Standards, Errors, and Preservation
Mastering the mechanics of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) process has become essential to fully protecting your clients’ rights in this current climate. Our expert panelists will provide a practical, deep dive into the critical legal and procedural issues that immigration attorneys encounter when facing adverse court decisions. They also will discuss leveraging motion practice as part of a comprehensive appellate strategy, including using motions to reopen or reconsider to introduce new evidence or correct errors before escalation to the U.S. circuit courts of appeals.
Featured Topics
- Clarifying the distinction between de novo review and the “clear error” standard, and when each applies to factual, legal, or mixed errors
- Identifying, recording, and framing judicial errors in the immigration judge’s decision to improve success on appeal
- Navigating the procedural requirements and best practices outlined in the BIA Practice Manual to ensure compliance and reinforce your case
- Preserving all issues for potential petitions for review and successfully framing arguments to meet jurisdictional requirements in the federal circuit courts
- Defending against motions and appeals filed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
- Understanding the process for filing and arguing bond appeals, recent rulings
AILA Membership Benefit – Access to Free Seminar Recordings (CLE Credit Available for $35)
Enjoy access to free seminar recordings as an AILA Member. AILA encourages live attendance for those wishing to ask the speaker questions. CLE credit is included with purchase for live participants.
Recordings will be available approximately two weeks after the live event date. AILA members can access these seminars, with no CLE credit, for free. Recordings are CLE eligible in most jurisdictions and a $35 administration fee is required to obtain CLE credit.
Contact us at cle@aila.org or visit AILA’s Web Seminar Recordings page for more information about receiving CLE credit for a web seminar recording.
| Product Details | |
| Event Date | May 19, 2026 |
| Format | Web Seminar |
| Length | 90 minutes |
| CLE Eligible | Yes. Live attendance must be recorded in My CLE by Tuesday, May 26, 2026. This deadline does not apply to the OnDemand format. |
| Digital Library | Digital goods (MP3, PDF, ZIP, etc.) are available for download for two years after purchase. |
Eligible participants can receive up to 1.8 CLE credit hours. AILA will administer CLE credit only to individuals who register and log into the web seminar. AILA cannot verify your attendance and participation in this program unless you register directly for the web seminar and use your name to log in to participate in the program. Therefore, persons who log in or listen in on the web seminar as part of a group will not be able to obtain CLE credit.
Please note that your jurisdiction may limit the amount of distance learning credit you can earn. To view details on your jurisdiction's credit restrictions and CLE requirements, visit the CLE Center.
AILA has filed for CLE and specialized credit in all jurisdictions with mandatory CLE requirements. For details about specific approvals, contact us at cle@aila.org.
- AILA applies for accreditation upon attorneys’ request after participation for the following states: AR, DE, IA, ID, KS, KY, LA, ME, MN, MS, OR, TN and WY. Programs are typically approved.
- Florida and Rhode Island - Attorneys must apply on their own for approval of seminars in FL and RI. Programs are typically approved.
- The OnDemand Recording format does not qualify for CLE credit in the following jurisdictions: MO and PR. Please note that your jurisdiction may limit OnDemand credit based on the date of the original presentation. View the OnDemand Downloadable Expiration Chart for more details.
To receive CLE credit for the live event, attorneys must record web seminar attendance and the CLE code provided by May 26, 2026 via My CLE. CLE certificates will be available for download the day after the deadline reporting date.
Contact us at cle@aila.org or visit AILA’s Web Seminar Recordings page for more information about receiving CLE credit for a seminar recording.
David H. Wetmore, Washington, DC
*Susan G. Roy, Princeton Junction, NJ
*Patrick H. Sherwood, Portland, OR
