"Round Table" Files Amicus Brief in Chavez-Chilel

Amicus brief filed Mar. 25, 2022

"Amici are greatly concerned with the impact that the panel decision [20 F.4th 128] in the instant case will have on the development of asylum law relating to particular social groups. In S.E.R.L. v. Att’y Gen. of U.S., 894 F.3d 535, 550 (3d Cir. 2019), this court recognized concerns raised that under the canon of ejusdem generis, surrounding terms in the statute, including religion and political opinion, would likely be found too amorphous or diffuse to satisfy the narrowing particularity requirement imposed on particular social groups.

This court agreed that “[t]hose critiques raise legitimate concerns,” and could result in the imposition of an unreasonably high evidentiary burden. This court's response was that the particularity requirement remained relatively new, “and clarity and consistency can be expected to emerge with the accretion of case law.” Id. However, the panel decision in the instant case presents a barrier to the development foreseen in S.E.R.L. The decision additionally runs contrary to the individualized analysis cited by the BIA as a justification for adding the particularity requirement to the particular social group analysis."