1) WHAT WORKS
NDPA “Four Star General” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Charles Kuck reports:
My partner Danielle Claffey won yet ANOTHER Russian Asylum case the belly of the beast Atlanta Immigration Court. THIS is why lawyers are essential in asylum cases!
Danielle says:
Earlier this week, I had the great fortune of securing asylee status for a young Muslim girl from Russia, before an Atlanta immigration judge. Though she is young and was so quiet for the last year I was handling her case, in court, she was strong, confident, and provided vivid detail of what she went through for the entire 19 years of her life in Russia before fleeing for America. After the judge formally granted her asylee status, and the government waived appeal, the judge told her she was sorry for everything she went through in her home country. When the judge granted her case, and the interpreter translated the judge’s words, it was the first time I saw my client smile, followed by a big deep breath. She has carried a lot in her 21 years, but can now rest easy and pursue all of her dreams here in the U.S.
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Partner
Kuck Baxter LLC
Atlanta, GA
PHOTO: Kuck Baxter
Many congrats, Danielle, and thanks so much for sharing! With great representation, anything is possible, even in Atlanta!
THIS is actually the way Immigration Court could and should work on a regular basis from all involved! Teamwork for justice! Note that:
- No appeal;
- No petition for review;
- No remand;
- No “aimless docket reshuffling;”
- No need to keep renewing work authorization;
- Respondent feels welcomed and understood by U.S. justice system;
- Respondent leaves courtroom on the way to a green card, eventual U.S. citizenship, and can fulfill full potential in society;
- Models and rewards best practices and professional cooperation (by EOIR, ICE, and the private bar) in achieving “justice with efficiency;”
- As Charles says, representation is essential; you bet; so, why hasn’t Garland worked WITH the pro bono bar, NGOs, and clinical educators to facilitate representation in every asylum case? (HINT: “Aimless Docket Reshuffling” and its derivative “Expedited Dockets” — both “Garland specialties” — are major, DOJ-created, impediments to effective representation and are particularly discouraging and problematic for pro bono representatives!
2) WHAT DOESN’T WORK
Dan Kowalski reports for LexisNexis:
http://media.ca8.uscourts.gov/opndir/24/02/223262P.pdf
“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 does not explain how they apply to Davis’s case. Neither the IJ nor the BIA met the requirements of reasoned decision-making. … Without an adequate explanation, this Court cannot conduct a meaningful review of the BIA’s September 30, 2022 order. … This Court grants Davis’s petition for review in case no. 22-3262, denies the petition for review in case no. 23-1229, and remands for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.”
[Hats off to Colleen Mary Cowgill, Joseph N. Glynn, Elaine Janet Goldenberg, Keren Hart Zwick, Zachary Scott Buckheit, Golnaz Fakhimi, David R. Fine, Kira Michele Geary, Haarika R. Reddy, Cynthia Louise Rice and Kate Thorstad!]
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Congrats to the NDPA team from Immigration and Disability Law Scholars.
But, this is an example of how Merrick Garland’s DOJ is failing the basics of American justice! Note that:
- Two levels of EOIR flunk “Judging 101” — badly;
- Inappropriate “defense of the indefensible” (and easily correctable) by Garland’s DOJ (OIL) asserting semi-frivolous jurisdictional argument;
- Wastes Court of Appeals time on something Garland could and should have corrected and prevented from reoccurring;
- Failure to follow Circuit precedent by both EOIR and OIL;
- Failure to apply established standards;
- Likely use of mindless “any reason to deny boilerplate” at EOIR;
- Generates needless motion to reconsider;
- After four years, two IJ hearings, two administrative appeals, a motion to reopen, a motion to reconsider, a trip to the Court of Appeals, case remains unresolved;
- Competent EOIR Judges could have reopened the case and ruled on the merits in less time and using fewer resources than trying to mindlessly avoid providing the respondent with a reasoned decision;
- In a system with three million pending cases these types of easily avoidable, sophomoric mistakes from supposedly “expert” judges are repeated over and over again— not always caught and corrected — leading to denials of due process and fundamental fairness and promoting backlog-building “aimless docket reshuffling!”
- What if the the wonderful team at “Immigraton and Disability Law Scholars” could devote 100% of their time to representing vulnerable individuals at merits hearings in Immigration Court rather than having to correct avoidable mistakes by EOIR and OIL?
After three years in charge of EOIR, why hasn’t Merrick Garland, a former Court of Appeals Judge nominated to the Supremes:
- Cleaned house at EOIR;
- Brought in new, expert, dynamic, due-process-focused leadership;
- Institutionalized best practices (see example 1 above);
- Attacked system-wide anti-immigrant culture, lack of quality control, and unprofessional decision-making that continues to plague this critical “retail level” of American justice (see example 2 above);
- Fixed OIL so that it will stop undermining justice in America by raising specious arguments and defending indefensible EOIR mistakes in the Article III Courts?
PHOTO: Wikipedia Commons
It’s not rocket science; it doesn’t require legislation (although Garland certainly should have been publicly pushing for Article I); it just takes a laser-focused commitment to due process, fundamental fairness, best practices, and efficient delivery of justice from what continues to be America’s worst “court system!”
Why that leadership and action isn’t coming from Garland is a question that everyone who cares about the future of American 🇺🇸⚖️ justice should be asking every day! Fix the fixable! Model the best! That’s “Good Governing 101!”
🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!
PWS
02-03-24