"The Voice of the New Due Process Army" ————– Musings on Events in U.S. Immigration Court, Immigration Law, Sports, Music, Politics, and Other Random Topics by Retired United States Immigration Judge (Arlington, Virginia) and former Chairman of the Board of Immigration Appeals PAUL WICKHAM SCHMIDT and DR. ALICIA TRICHE, expert brief writer, practical scholar, emeritus Editor-in-Chief of The Green Card (FBA), and 2022 Federal Bar Association Immigration Section Lawyer of the Year. She is a/k/a “Delta Ondine,” a blues-based alt-rock singer-songwriter, who performs regularly in Memphis, where she hosts her own Blues Brunch series, and will soon be recording her first full, professional album. Stay tuned! 🎶 To see our complete professional bios, just click on the link below.
Elizabeth Gibson Attorney, NY Legal Assistance Group Publisher of “The Gibson Report”
COVID-19
Note: Policies are rapidly changing, so please verify information on the relevant government websites and with colleagues on listservs as best you can.
EOIR Status Overview & EOIR Court Status Map/List: Hearings in non-detained cases at courts without an announced date are postponed through, and including, November 27, 2020. NYC non-detained remains closed for hearings.
WaPo: He will repeal the ban on almost all travel from some Muslim-majority countries, and he will reinstate the program allowing “dreamers,” who were brought to the United States illegally as children, to remain in the country, according to people familiar with his plans. See also Factbox: Here are six things Joe Biden will likely do on immigration.
AP: A federal appeals court has allowed a Trump administration rule that would deny green cards to immigrants who use public benefits like food stamps to go back into effect while it considers the case.
Gov Exec: The lone Democrat on the board of the agency tasked with administering federal labor law accused his colleagues of “sophistry” and “facetious” reasoning to strip more than 450 federal employees of their collective bargaining rights.
WaPo: Kamala Devi Harris, a daughter of Indian and Jamaican immigrants, is set to become the highest-ranking woman in the nation’s 244-year existence, as well as a high-profile representation of the country’s increasingly diverse composition.
Border Report: Most of the 600 or so migrants now living in the camp were placed in the Migrant Protection Protocols program, also known as the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which requires them to wait on Mexican soil during their U.S. immigration proceedings. The asylum process can take many months, sometimes years, and some of the migrants Border Report spoke with have been living in this filthy tent encampment on the banks of the Rio Grande since 2019.
Science: ScienceInsider has learned that Jason Richwine, an independent public policy analyst, has been appointed as deputy undersecretary of commerce for science and technology and could start work as soon as today.
Gothamist: Sastre said that even if Trump loses, new detention contracts could still be signed by the time former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, is inaugurated.
AILA is updating this practice alert as a result of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals issuing a stay of the N.D. of Illinois decision to set aside the DHS Public Charge Final Rule pending appeal. All adjustment of status application must be filed with the I-944 once again. AILA Doc. No. 20110232
The AG ruled that the bar to eligibility for asylum and withholding based on persecution does not include an exception for coercion or duress, and that DHS does not have an evidentiary burden to show ineligibility based on the persecutor bar. Matter of Negusie, 28 I&N Dec. 120 (A.G. 2020) AILA Doc. No. 20110631
Unpublished BIA decision reverses denial of joint motion to reopen where respondent presented evidence indicating that she was admitted with a visa and was thus eligible to adjust status. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Acosta Carmona, 6/1/20) AILA Doc. No. 20110502
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order due to exceptional circumstances where respondent was admitted to emergency room on morning of final hearing due to sudden onset of chest pain. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Bhardwaj, 5/28/20) AILA Doc. No. 20110501
Unpublished BIA decision reopens proceedings for respondent ordered deported under INA 237(a)(1)(D)(i) following DHS approval of waiver under INA 216(c)(4). Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Clarke, 5/27/20) AILA Doc. No. 20110500
EOIR released guidelines for the implementation of the settlement agreement in Mendez Rojas v. Wolf, which requires class members to file notice of class membership on or before 3/31/22. Individuals who establish class membership shall be deemed to have timely filed an asylum application. AILA Doc. No. 20110541
In 2019, DOJ petitioned the FLRA in an attempt to strip immigration judges (IJs) of their right to unionize. On November 2, 2020, the FLRA concluded that IJs are management officials and stripped them of their collective bargaining rights. This featured issue page provides additional resources. AILA Doc. No. 19081303
NIP: The lawsuit challenges proposed rule changes to the U.S. asylum process which are slated to go into effect on November 20. These rules are the latest step in the Trump Administration’s effort to drastically cut down the number of applicants and recipients of asylum protections in the U.S.
USCIS announced via the Form I-589 webpage that beginning 11/2/20, asylum offices will no longer accept the filing of Form I-589s that previously were filed directly with a local asylum office. These forms must be filed with the Asylum Vetting Center in Atlanta, Georgia. AILA Doc. No. 20110239
EOIR Released a memo (PM 21-03) canceling and replacing OPPM 04-06 and memorializing EOIR policies regarding the use of the telephone and video teleconferencing (VTC or VC) to conduct hearings in proceedings before an immigration judge. AILA Doc. No. 20110641
EOIR issued a policy memo (PM 21-02) rescinding Operating Policies and Procedures Memoranda (OPPRM) 13-03, Guidelines for Implementation of the ABT Settlement Agreement, and 16-01, Filing Applications for Asylum. The rescissions are effective November 6, 2020. AILA Doc. No. 20110640
President Trump issued a determination on 10/27/20, setting the refugee admissions ceiling for FY2021 at 15,000, which incorporates more than 6,000 unused places from the FY2020 ceiling. (85 FR 71219, 11/6/20) AILA Doc. No. 20102830
USCIS announced it has automatically extended the validity of EADs issued under the TPS designation for South Sudan through 5/1/21. USCIS also provided instructions for completing Form I-9 for beneficiaries who present an EAD with a category code of A12 or C19 and a Card Expires date of 11/2/20. AILA Doc. No. 20110531
EOIR final rule which finalizes the interim rule published at 84 FR 44537 on 8/26/19, with additional amendments. The rule is effective 11/3/20. (85 FR 69465, 11/3/20) AILA Doc. No. 20110238
