Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE
This resource page combines resources for attorneys representing clients before ICE. For information about why AILA is calling for the reduction and phasing out of immigration detention, please see our Featured Issue Page: Immigration Detention and Alternatives to Detention.
Quick Links
- Seeking Stays of Removal
- AILA Practice Pointers and Alerts (continually updated)
- Practice Advisory: Representing Detained Clients in the Virtual Landscape
- Practice Pointer: How to Locate Clients Apprehended by ICE
- Practice Pointer: Preparing for an Order of Supervision Appointment with ICE-ERO
- AILA ICE Liaison Agenda and Meeting Minutes
Communicating with OPLA, ERO, and CROs
The Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) includes 1300 attorneys who represent the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in immigration removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). OPLA litigates all removal cases as well as provides legal counsel to ICE personnel. At present, there are 25 field locations throughout the United States.
Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) manages all aspects of immigration enforcement from arrest, detention, and removal. ERO has 24 field office locations. ERO also manages an “alternative to detention” program that relies almost exclusively on the “Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP)” to monitor individuals in removal proceedings.
Since 2016, ICE has had an Office of Partnership and Engagement (formerly Office of Community Engagement) to be a link between the agency and stakeholders. As part of this office, Community Relations Officers (CROS) are assigned to every field office to work with local stakeholders such as attorneys and nonprofit organizations.
*Headquarters does not provide direct contact numbers or emails for individual employees.* (AILA Liaison Meeting with ICE on April 26, 2023)(AILA Doc. No. 23033004). However, attorneys can contact Chapter Local ICE Liaisons as they may have this information provided to them via local liaison engagement.
- DHS/ICE/OPLA Chief Counsel Contact Information [last updated in 2024, this list no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- Contact Information for Local OPLA Offices [last updated in 2024, this information no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- ERO Field Offices Contact Information*
- OPE Community Relations Officers
- ICE Check-In Scheduling Website
- ICE Online Change of Address Website
Latest on Enforcement Priorities & Prosecutorial Discretion
Executive Order 14159 (90 FR 8443, 1/29/25) directs DHS to set priorities that protect the public safety and national security interests of the American people, including by ensuring the successful enforcement of final orders of removal, enforcement of the INA and other Federal laws related to the illegal entry and unlawful presence of [noncitizens] in the United States and the enforcement of the purposes of this order. Given the January 25, 2025, confirmation of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, a memorandum detailing enforcement priorities may be issued in the coming weeks.
An unpublished ICE memo from acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello entitled “Interim Guidance: Civil Immigration Enforcement Actions in or near Courthouses” makes reference to targeted noncitizens and includes:
- National security or public safety threats;
- Those with criminal convictions;
- Gang members;
- Those who have been ordered removed from the United States but have failed to depart; and/or
- Those who have re-entered the country illegally after being removed.
Procedures and email inboxes created under the Biden Administration to request Prosecutorial Discretion no longer appear on the ICE website. AILA members are encouraged to review current DOJ regulations entitled “Efficient Case and Docket Management in Immigration Proceedings” for alternative basis for seeking termination or administrative closure.
Access to Counsel
- ERO eFile:
- An online system developed to electronically file G-28s with ERO. Attorneys and accredited representatives may register for ERO eFile accounts and may also sponsor law students and law graduates who work under their supervision. See AILA’s practice alert (AILA Doc. No. 24051506) for more information.
- ICE Attorney Information and Resources Page
- AILA Practice Alert: Updates to the ICE Attorney Information and Resource Page
Filing Administrative Complaints on Behalf of Detained and Formerly Detained Clients
- Online Intake Form for the Detention Ombudsman (myOIDO)
- Available for complaints for issues in ICE and CBP Custody nationwide, including to submit complaints about access to counsel problems on behalf of currently or previously detained clients.
- Online Complaint Form for DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL)
- Oversight of Immigration Detention: An Overview - May 16, 2022
(provides a list of agencies with which attorneys may file administrative complaints of detention center violations) - Immigration Judge Complaint Toolkit – August 31, 2022
- Practice Alert: Template for CRCL Complaint Regarding Failures to Provide Language Access – July 16, 2021
Selected ICE Policies and Current Status
For comprehensive comparison of current and prior ICE policies, please review the “Immigration Policy Tracker (IPTP).” The IPTP is a project of Professor Lucas Guttentag working with teams of Stanford and Yale law students and leading national immigration experts.
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Browse the Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE collection
Think Immigration: Could This Be Our Time?
In this blog post, Sarah Lachman describes her hopes for the incoming Congress to end inhumane enforcement, create an Article I immigration court, and pursue real reform, and the opportunities available to discuss and learn with colleagues at the upcoming AILA New York Symposium.
BIA Holds Finding of Likely Future Torture Was Speculative Where It Relied on General Country Conditions Evidence
The BIA held that the IJ’s finding of likely future torture was speculative where generalized country conditions evidence failed to establish a particularized risk or support the IJ’s finding that the respondent could not internally relocate. Matter of K–Y–V–R–, 30 I&N Dec. 203 (BIA 2026)
AILA ED Condemns Trump Administration’s Plans to Deport Afghan Immigrants Back to Danger
AILA ED Ben Johnson responded to reports that the Trump Administration plans to deport scores of Afghan immigrants to Pakistan where they are expected to then be sent back to danger in Afghanistan, stating that “America can enforce its immigration laws without abandoning our values.”
BIA Holds It Generally Will Not Reopen Proceedings Sua Sponte for Arriving Aliens Seeking Adjustment Before USCIS
The BIA reaffirmed Matter of Yauri, holding that it generally will not exercise its discretion to reopen proceedings sua sponte for an arriving alien to pursue adjustment of status before USCIS. Matter of Pierre-Louis, 30 I&N Dec. 212 (BIA 2026)
AILA ED: Supreme Court Declines Case, Further Undermining Independence of Immigration Courts
AILA ED Ben Johnson responded to the U.S. Supreme Court’s declining to take up the case regarding immigration judges’ authority to administratively close cases, stating that the Trump Administration has “coopted the courts to advance its mass deportation campaign.”
Think Immigration: AILA Celebrates Pro Bono Week 2026!
As part of Pro Bono Week 2026, AILA celebrates our members’ dedication to clients and the power of service; in this blog post, two attorneys share how pro bono work fuels persistent advocacy, builds practical skills, and connects practitioners with a community of support.
BIA Holds That South Carolina Second-Degree Assault and Battery Categorically Constitutes a CIMT
The BIA held that a conviction for assault and battery in the second degree in South Carolina, which requires a reckless mental state and the actual or attempted infliction of “moderate bodily injury,” is categorically for a CIMT. Matter of Mercader, 30 I&N Dec. 185 (BIA 2026)
CA6 Holds That It Lacks Jurisdiction over Standalone Reasonable-Fear Challenge
The court held it lacked jurisdiction over a petition challenging only an IJ’s negative reasonable-fear determination and recognized that Riley v. Bondi abrogated precedent permitting standalone review of withholding and CAT rulings. (Castro-Fuentes v. Blanche, 10/27/26)
DOJ 60-Day Notice of Revision and Extension of Forms EOIR-42A and EOIR-42B
DOJ notice of revision of Forms EOIR-42A, Application for Cancellation of Removal for Certain Permanent Residents and EOIR-42B, Application for Cancellation of Removal and Adjustment of Status for Certain Nonpermanent Residents. Comments due 11/25/26. (91 FR 53897, 8/20/26; 91 FR 67334, 10/26/26)
BIA Reverses Credibility Finding and Holds DHS Established Reason to Believe Returning LPR Engaged in Drug Trafficking
The BIA reversed the IJ’s credibility finding and held that DHS proved by clear and convincing evidence the returning LPR engaged in illegal activity after departure and there was reason to believe she knowingly trafficked drugs. Matter of Ozuna Mendoza, 30 I&N Dec. 177 (BIA 2026)
CA10 Holds It Has Jurisdiction over Reinstatement Orders After Riley v. Bondi but Dismisses Petition as Untimely
The court held that reinstatement orders remain reviewable after Riley but dismissed the petition as untimely, assuming without deciding that equitable tolling was available and finding that no extraordinary circumstance prevented timely filing. (Vizguerra-Ramirez v. Blanche, 10/26/26)
CA5 Holds Petitioners Not Lawfully Admitted Are Not Entitled to Bond Hearing
The court held that noncitizens who have not been admitted into the U.S. are not entitled to any process beyond what is provided by statute. Accordingly, an unadmitted noncitizen has no statutory or constitutional right to a bond hearing. (Sosnava Rodriguez v. Vergara, 10/23/26)
CA9 Remands Denial of Relief Where IJ Misunderstood Bisexuality and Denied Opportunity to Corroborate
The court held that the agency misunderstood the petitioner’s particular social group based on his bisexual orientation and erred by failing to give petitioner notice and a meaningful opportunity to present additional corroborating evidence to support his claim. (A.M. v. Blanche, 10/23/26)
Think Immigration: An AILA Law Journal Issue for Our Times
AILA Law Journal Editor-in-Chief Cyrus Mehta describes the new edition, writing that the editorial board sought to “bring forward a collection of both original and thought-provoking articles by authors who have creatively advanced topics and ideas that may have received too little attention.”
BIA Holds That No Further Steps to Effect Notice Are Reasonably Available When Mail to Only Address of Record Is Undeliverable
The BIA held that when mail sent to a respondent’s only address of record is returned as undeliverable, there are no additional reasonably available or practicable steps the Board or an immigration court can take to effect notice. Matter of Chamorro Castillo, 30 I&N Dec. 170 (BIA 2026)
EOIR Announces Swearing in of 22 Immigration Judges and 4 Temporary Immigration Judges
EOIR announced the swearing in of 22 immigration judges and 4 temporary immigration judges. EOIR also provided biographical information for the new judges.
CA5 Finds Past Persecution Creates No Presumption of Future Torture and BIA May Screen New Evidence in Denying Remand
The court held that past persecution creates no presumption of future torture under the CAT, that substantial-evidence review governs CAT eligibility, and that the BIA may assess new evidence for reliability and probative value when deciding whether to remand. (Zahid v. Blanche, 10/20/26)
BIA Declines to Follow Ninth Circuit’s Inherently Unbelievable Standard for Affidavits Supporting Motion to Reopen
The BIA held that the Ninth Circuit’s inherently unbelievable standard conflicts with U.S. Supreme Court precedent, and that IJs and the BIA need not accept as true facts supporting a motion to reopen even if not inherently unbelievable. Matter of J–E–D–C–, 30 I&N Dec. 162 (BIA 2026)
CA4 Holds Past Abuse Alone Is Insufficient for CAT Protection and Upholds No-Nexus Finding on PSG of Imputed Homosexuals
The court held that past abuse alone does not establish CAT eligibility without a showing of likely future torture, and that substantial evidence supported the finding of no nexus to the petitioner’s proposed particular social group (PSG) of imputed homosexuals. (Qaiymah v. Blanche, 10/19/26)
BIA Overrules Matter of Sanchez Sosa Continuance Standard and Holds No Presumption Favors a Continuance for a U Visa Petition
The BIA held that no presumption favors a continuance for a prima facie approvable U visa petition and that IJs should apply the Matter of L–A–B–R– test in deciding good cause based on a pending petition or visa availability. Matter of L. Ramirez, 30 I&N Dec. 157 (BIA 2026)
CA8 Upholds Denial of Asylum and Humanitarian Asylum Based on Fundamental Change in Circumstances and Insufficiently Severe Past Harm
The court held that substantial evidence supported the agency’s finding that DHS rebutted the presumption of a well-founded fear of future persecution by showing a fundamental change in circumstances in The Gambia, and affirmed the denial of humanitarian asylum. (Jatta v. Blanche, 10/16/26)
AILA Law Journal, Vol. 8, Number 2, October 2026
The October 2026 edition of the AILA Law Journal is now available.
CA1 Upholds Asylum Denial Where Stalking, Threats, and Emotional Harm Did Not Compel a Finding of Persecution
The court held that substantial evidence supported the findings that the petitioner, stalked for three years in Honduras by a man who threatened her partner, did not establish past persecution or an objectively reasonable fear of future persecution. (Alvarado-Hernandez v. Blanche, 10/15/26)
District Court Approves Class Action Settlement Agreement in Ms. L. v. ICE
The district court approved a class action settlement agreement in a lawsuit relating to families who were apprehended together by the U.S. government at the U.S.-Mexico border between 1/20/17 and 1/20/21, but were then separated and kept apart. (Ms. L., et al. v. ICE, et al., 12/1/23)
Practice Alert: Increased Notice of Appeal Filing Fee & Payments Made before October 1, 2026
AILA's EOIR Committee shares this practice alert regarding an increase in the filing fee for a Notice of Appeal to the BIA from $1,030 to $1,060, effective 10/1/26. This new fee applies based on the date that Notice of Appeal is filed, not the payment date.