Immigration Law

ABA president calls for creation of independent immigration courts, criticizes ‘remain in Mexico’ policy

ABA President Judy Perry Martinez told a House subcommittee Wednesday that she has firsthand experience with the problems facing immigration courts and the people who appear there.

Jan 30, 2020 10:32 AM CST

Immigration judges are leaving because the job is ‘unbearable,’ union says

Dozens of immigration judges have left or retired because of concerns about judicial independence. The job has become “unbearable,” according to A. Ashley Tabaddor, president of the National Association of Immigration Judges.

Jan 28, 2020 12:33 PM CST

Supreme Court allows US to implement rule curbing green cards based on likely public assistance

The U.S. Supreme Court allowed on Monday the implementation of the “public charge” rule that makes it easier for the government to deny visas and green cards to immigrants who receive or are likely to receive public assistance.

Jan 27, 2020 2:44 PM CST

Judge calls ICE if he thinks defendants in his courtroom are in US illegally

A Cincinnati judge said he regularly calls U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement when he suspects that defendants in his courtroom are in the country illegally.

Jan 27, 2020 10:10 AM CST

7th Circuit is aghast at ‘obduracy’ of Board of Immigration Appeals, which refused to implement its decision

The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Chicago didn’t mince words in a Jan. 23 opinion chastising the Board of Immigration Appeals for defying its remand order and concluding the appeals court had ruled incorrectly in the case.

Jan 27, 2020 6:30 AM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Rep. Tulsi Gabbard sues over Hillary Clinton gripe; court order doesn’t stop deportation

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard sues Hillary Clinton for ‘Russian asset’ comment about unnamed candidate Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, a 2020 Democratic presidential primary candidate, has filed a defamation suit against Hillary Clinton for her podcast comments about “somebody who is currently in the Democratic primary” being groomed to be a third-party candidate.…

Jan 23, 2020 4:36 PM CST

Asylum-seekers have a right to federal court review of expedited removal orders, ABA amicus brief says

The ABA filed an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday in support of a Sri Lankan who faced political persecution and is challenging a policy that says asylum-seekers are not entitled to federal court review of expedited removal orders.

Jan 23, 2020 12:40 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: Texas no longer accepting refugees; new San Francisco DA announces round of layoffs

New refugees no longer welcome in Texas, governor says Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced in a letter released Friday that the state will not take new refugees under a federal refugee resettlement program in 2020. Abbott said more refugees have been accepted by Texas than any other state since 2010,…

Jan 13, 2020 2:42 PM CST

Appeals court directs all California cities to follow ‘sanctuary state’ law

All California cities must follow the “sanctuary state” law, which restricts local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration agents, an appeals court ruled Friday.

Jan 13, 2020 1:13 PM CST

Afternoon Briefs: RBG says she’s cancer-free; ‘Eat a bowl of dicks’ lawyer had acknowledged stress

Justice Ginsburg says she is cancer-free U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has told CNN that she is cancer-free after being treated for a malignant tumor on her pancreas. Ginsburg, long a civil procedure aficionado, has resumed an active schedule and displays renewed vigor. In oral arguments, she has…

Jan 9, 2020 4:10 PM CST

Chemerinsky: It’s likely to be an amazing year in the Supreme Court

No U.S. Supreme Court term in recent memory has had more potential blockbuster cases on the docket than this one. The court is likely to dominate the headlines in May, and especially June 2020, with rulings on almost every major controversial area of law.

Jan 2, 2020 11:17 AM CST

Meet 11 ABA members who inspired us in 2019

Members Who Inspire is an ABA Journal series profiling exceptional ABA members. This past year, we featured many in the legal field who are doing good work and paying it forward, including pro bono for veterans, fighting for prisoners' rights, and promoting literacy and advancing diversity.

Dec 26, 2019 8:55 AM CST

Chemerinsky: 2019 was all about setting up the blockbuster year 2020 promises to be

The past year was unusual in the U.S. Supreme Court because the justices handed down only a few blockbuster decisions but then filled their docket with a stunning number of cases of potentially great significance to be decided in spring 2020. Interestingly, the court could have taken many of these cases in the October 2018 term for decisions in June 2019, but it did not do so.

Dec 23, 2019 9:34 AM CST

A biotech attorney’s experience with the ‘guerrilla lawyers’ at the border

“I have struggled with how to make the tragedy of Matamoros come alive in a way that will do justice to the raw experience I witnessed. Of course, there is no justice in their raw experiences—that is the point,” writes Seattle lawyer Jill B. Scott.

Dec 12, 2019 6:30 AM CST

Does ban on encouraging illegal immigration violate First Amendment? SCOTUS to decide

The U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether a 1986 law making it a crime to encourage unauthorized immigration is an unconstitutional infringement on free speech.

Nov 22, 2019 12:11 PM CST