If you filed for asylum in immigration court without an attorney and are now appealing to the BIA, it’s worth asking: did the Immigration Judge give you a list of free legal service providers? A recent Board of Immigration Appeals decision, Matter of K-O- (Aug. 27,...
In a 2013 unpublished decision, Matter of Ramirez Samuel, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) reopened a case based on ineffective assistance of counsel—even though the respondent did not conclusively show that the outcome would have been different. This decision...
A new unpublished BIA Decision reverses an Immigration Judge's decision denying a motion to reopen removal proceedings where the immigrant was ordered removed in absentia. Remarkably, the judge entered the removal order even though the immigrant was physically present...
When an individual believes his former attorney handled his case badly, he may be able to either reopen his proceedings or appeal the Immigration Judge's decision, arguing he has suffered from "ineffective assistance of counsel." However, the BIA usually...
We received a new unpublished decision today from the BIA administratively closing an asylum appeal because, according to the Board, our client is now eligible for Temporary Protected Status ("TPS"). We were already aware he was eligible for TPS and already...
When the BIA remands a case "for further proceedings," what does that mean? A remand sometimes says it is for a very specific purpose. But if the Board generally remands for "further proceedings," the open-ended remand isn't limited and should entitle the immigrant to...
The BIA has issued a new unpublished opinion which discusses whether an IJ should continue removal proceedings when the immigrant seeks to apply for a U visa, as the victim of a crime. In In re Hernandez-Guttierez, the BIA concluded that the immigrant's desire...
In an unpublished decision in May, 2011, the Board of Immigration Appeals issued an unpublished decision holding that fleeing from a peace officer does not qualify as “obstruction of justice” under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA § 101(a)(43)(S)), and...
We received an excellent win from the Board this morning on an appeal where the Immigration Judge had concluded our client was not eligible to apply for immigration relief because he had two convictions for possession of marijuana. The issue on appeal was whether the...