February 26, 2024

How Corner Post Along with the Demise of Chevron Deference Can Open Up Immigration Regulations to Challenges

Cyrus Mehta, Feb. 26, 2024 "On February 20, 2024, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Corner Post, Inc. v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System . This case could potentially expand the six year statute of limitations to challenge a regulation under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). § 702 of the APA provides that “]a] person suffering legal wrong because of an agency action, or...

February 23, 2024

Innovation Law Lab Files FOIA Lawsuit

Innovation Law Lab, Feb. 22, 2024 " We filed suit against the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to demand that USCIS publicly and proactively disclose the Credible Fear Procedures Manual (CFPM) and the Reasonable Fear Procedures Manual (RFPM). USCIS uses these manuals to decide whether individuals who express a fear of return to their home countries will...

February 23, 2024

New Visa Restriction Policy for Transportation Operators Facilitating Irregular Migration to the United States

State Department, Feb. 21, 2024 "The State Department is today implementing a new visa restriction policy under Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) Section 212(a)(3)(C) that targets owners, executives, and senior officials of charter flight, ground, and maritime transportation companies providing transportation services designed for use primarily by persons intending to migrate irregularly to the United States...

February 23, 2024

Matter of Azrag, 28 I&N Dec. 784 (BIA 2024)

Matter of Azrag, 28 I&N Dec. 784 (BIA 2024) - Where a State court order granting a respondent’s motion to vacate a conviction does not indicate the reason for the vacatur, and there is no other basis in the record to independently establish the reason, the respondent has not satisfied his burden to show that the court vacated his conviction because of a substantive or procedural defect in his criminal proceedings...

February 21, 2024

How Trump’s Quota Policy Transformed Immigration Judging

ELISE N. BLASINGAME, CHRISTINA L. BOYD, ROBERTO CARLOS and JOE ORNSTEIN, February 21, 2024 "In new research , Elise Blasingame, Christina Boyd, Roberto Carlos, and Joseph Ornstein explore how the Trump administration used a quota policy for immigration judges working under the Department of Justice’s purview to influence how they adjudicated cases. The authors find the policy successfully nudged more judges...

February 18, 2024

Exchange Visitor Program Notice

Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 34 / Tuesday, February 20, 2024 "In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Visitor Program regulations, the Assistant Secretary for Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA), U.S. Department of State, has waived certain regulatory provisions to establish an exchange of German principals to secondary schools overseen and financed by the government of the Federal Republic of...

February 15, 2024

Pro Bono CAT Victory: Matter of IES

Stephen Yale-Loehr, Evangeline Charles, Isaac Belenkiy report: "IES is a 41-year-old man from Mexico who first came to the U.S. when he was 18 years old. As a youth, IES joined a gang. He was arrested in 2005 for possessing a small quantity of drugs and was sentenced to four years in prison for “transporting drugs.” While in prison, IES defected from the gang and, following his release, was removed...

February 13, 2024

CA3 CAT Remand (Somalia) - Herrow v. Atty. Gen.

Herrow v. Atty. Gen. "[W]e conclude that the BIA, in deciding his CAT claim, failed to consider evidence favorable to Herrow. For that reason, we will remand his petition as it applies to that claim. ... Herrow claims that the BIA and IJ erred in denying his CAT claim and in finding that (1) he is unlikely to face torture and (2) the Somali government would not acquiesce in such torture. Because the BIA and IJ...

February 13, 2024

SIJ Victory in TN: B.R. v. Quin

Children's Rights "Children’s Rights and partners Bass, Berry & Sims PLC and McDermott Will & Emery LLP, filed a lawsuit against Tennessee’s Department of Children’s Services (DCS) on behalf of immigrant minor children placed in Tennessee’s foster system and Advocates for Immigrants Rights (AIR), a nonprofit law firm that provides legal services to immigrants. The complaint asserts...

February 13, 2024

The BIA Hints At A Post-Chevron World

Cyrus D. Mehta and Kaitlyn Box, Feb. 13, 2024 "On January 31, 2024, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) issued a decision in Matter of Aguilar Hernandez . Mr. Aguilar Hernandez, a noncitizen from Mexico, had been served a Notice to Appear (NTA) in 2019 that did not list the date and time of his individual hearing. He objected that this NTA was defective at both his individual hearing and moved to terminate...

February 12, 2024

Visa Bulletin for March 2024

Visa Bulletin for March 2024 Notes: D. SCHEDULED EXPIRATION OF THE EMPLOYMENT FOURTH PREFERENCE RELIGIOUS WORKERS (SR) CATEGORY Pursuant to H.R. 6363, signed on January 19, 2024, the non-minister special immigrant program expires on March 8, 2024. No SR visas may be issued overseas, or final action taken on adjustment of status cases, after midnight March 7, 2024. Visas issued prior to that date will be valid only...

February 12, 2024

USCIS Delay Case Moves Forward: Mohamed v. Jaddou

Mohamed v. Jaddou "Plaintiff Rabi Awil Mohamed came to the United States as a refugee in 2015 and has been seeking derivative refugee status via I-730 petitions for his family since arrival. After filing his initial Complaint, United States Customs and Immigration Service (“USCIS”) approved his I-730 petitions and sent them to the Department of State (“DOS”) for processing in Ethiopia. Mr...

February 09, 2024

ECAS Login Migration Coming

EOIR, Feb. 9, 2024 "As part of the Executive Office for Immigration Review’s (EOIR) continuing technological advancements, the agency announces new procedures for accessing the EOIR Courts & Appeals System (ECAS) Case Portal. To enhance security and improve the overall experience for users, EOIR is transitioning to DOJ Login, a cloud-based identity management and authentication service. To facilitate...

February 07, 2024

Matter of Bernardo, 28 I&N Dec. 781 (BIA 2024)

Matter of Bernardo, 28 I&N Dec. 781 (BIA 2024) - When a petition to remove the conditions on residence is withdrawn before United States Citizenship and Immigration Services prior to adjudication, the Immigration Judge ordinarily cannot review the merits of that petition in removal proceedings. Matter of Mendes, 20 I&N Dec. 833 (BIA 1994), followed.

February 06, 2024

Unpub. CA9 Asylum Remand (India, Relocation) - Singh v. Garland

Singh v. Garland " “Because of the IJ’s lack of clarity” as to which party was required to show that Singh could or could not safely relocate, we remand Singh’s asylum claim based on his membership in the family of Balkar Singh to the agency “to ensure that it evaluates the relocation issue in accord with the proper burden of proof.” " Hats off to superlitigator Bob Jobe...

February 01, 2024

CA8 on Reasoned Decision-Making: Davis v. Garland

Davis v. Garland "The BIA erred in affirming the IJ. The entirety of the BIA’s analysis about the motion to reopen was that Davis “has not established that evidence of his mental health issues and of his past and feared harm if returned to Liberia are new, previously unavailable, or would likely change the result in his case.” This one sentence alludes to the elements of a motion to reopen, but...

February 01, 2024

Making the Government Turn Square Corners in Immigration Court: Matter of Aguilar Hernandez

The winning attorney in Matter of Aguilar Hernandez , Bashir Ghazialam, provides this commentary: " As immigration lawyers, we need to be ready for and are expected to turn square corners in every step and stage of our cases. We need to be ready to readily respond to those tight scheduling orders despite the fullness of our calendars and our growing caseloads, not to mention high and sometimes misgauged client...

February 01, 2024

Federal Court Orders Indiana to Allow Access to Driver Licenses for Residents with Humanitarian Protections Regardless of Country of Origin

NILC, Jan. 11, 2024 " A federal district court in Indiana today entered a preliminary injunction ordering the state to remove restrictions on accessing Indiana driver’s licenses or identification cards for residents who live in the state under federal humanitarian protections, while the case moves forward. The decision comes after the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana (ACLU of Indiana) and the National...

January 31, 2024

H-1B Final Rule (Advance Copy)

This document is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on 02/02/2024 "The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is amending its regulations to implement the proposed beneficiary centric selection process for H-1B registrations, provide start date flexibility for certain H-1B cap-subject petitions, and implement additional integrity measures related to H-1B registration. DATES: This final rule is...

January 31, 2024

USCIS Fee Schedule Final Rule

Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 21 / Wednesday, January 31, 2024 "This final rule adjusts certain immigration and naturalization benefit request fees charged by USCIS. This rule also provides additional fee exemptions for certain humanitarian categories and makes changes to certain other immigration benefit request requirements. USCIS conducted a comprehensive biennial fee review and determined that current fees...

January 31, 2024

Matter of Aguilar Hernandez, 28 I&N Dec. 774 (BIA 2024)

Matter of Aguilar Hernandez, 28 I&N Dec. 774 (BIA 2024) - The Department of Homeland Security cannot remedy a notice to appear that lacks the date and time of the initial hearing before the Immigration Judge by filing a Form I-261 because this remedy is contrary to the plain text of 8 C.F.R. § 1003.30 and inconsistent with the Supreme Court’s decision in Niz-Chavez v. Garland, 593 U.S. 155 (2021). [Hats...

January 26, 2024

Housing Win at CA4

Justice4All, Jan. 24, 2024 "For nearly eight years, we have been fighting on behalf of four families who were eventually forced to leave their homes in a Fairfax County manufactured home park because one spouse could not prove lawful immigration presence and because their landlord charged these families higher rents. Twice during this fight, we appealed negative federal district court decisions, and earlier this...

January 26, 2024

DHS Extends, Redesignates Syria for TPS

This document is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on 01/29/2024 "Through this notice, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announces that the Secretary of Homeland Security (Secretary) is extending the designation of Syria for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for 18 months, beginning on April 1, 2024, and ending on September 30, 2025. This extension allows existing TPS beneficiaries to retain...

January 25, 2024

La. Gov. Landry's Executive Order Explainer

NIPNLG, Jan. 24, 2024 "On January 16, 2024, Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry issued an executive order titled “Identifying, Quantifying, and Mitigating the Adverse Effects of Illegal Immigration of Louisiana.” This community explainer explains the memo and answers some frequently asked questions."

January 25, 2024

Major CA1 Victory: Pineda-Maldonado v. Garland

Pineda-Maldonado v. Garland "Ricardo Jose Pineda-Maldonado ("Pineda-Maldonado") is a native and citizen of El Salvador. He petitions for review of the decision by the Board of Immigration Appeals ("BIA") that denied his application for asylum and claims for withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture ("CAT"). We grant the petition, vacate the BIA's...