Immigration Courts
Immigration courts play a crucial role in ensuring that immigration laws are applied fairly and consistently, providing due process to those facing removal. Learn more about issues facing the courts today and explore the actions we're taking to ensure the rights of immigrants are upheld and legal integrity is maintained.
Coalition Letter to President Biden on Justice Department Reform of Immigration Courts and Enforcement Priorities
The American Immigration Council joined AILA and other organizations in calling for vital reforms to ensure fairness and integrity in the immigration courts and the enforcement system. Read More
Immigrants Appear for Their Court Hearings, New Data Shows
Do most immigrants show up for their immigration court hearings? A new report released by the American Immigration Council reveals that the answer to this question is a clear “Yes.” As the Biden administration begins its overhaul of the immigration enforcement system, we must ensure that our policies… Read More
Measuring In Absentia Removal in Immigration Court
This analysis of data provided by the federal government reveals that 83% of all nondetained immigrants with completed or pending removal cases attended all their hearings from 2008 to 2018. Read More
11 Years of Government Data Reveal That Immigrants Do Show Up for Court
A new report released today by the American Immigration Council examines 11 years of government data on the rate at which immigrants appear for hearings in U.S. immigration court. The report, “Measuring In Absentia Removal in Immigration Court,” concludes that an overwhelming 83% of immigrants attend their immigration court hearings, and those who fail to appear in court often did not receive notice or faced hardship in getting to court. Read More
Trump’s Drastic Immigration Court Fee Hikes Are Blocked in Court
The Trump administration has repeatedly tried to stop low-income immigrants from accessing protections and exercising their rights in the United States. Its last attempt—increasing immigration court fees by up to 800% through a new rule—was largely blocked in federal court on January 18, just hours before the rule was due… Read More
Federal Court Blocks Dramatic Immigration Courts Fee Increases
A federal court blocked nearly all of a Trump administration rule that would have drastically increased fees in immigration proceedings in which the government seeks to deport immigrants, many of whom are long-term residents of this country. Read More
It’s Time to Fix the Immigration Court System
This article is part of the Moving Forward on Immigration series that explores the future of immigration in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election. The backbone of a functioning justice system is due process. Yet over 1.25 million immigrants are fighting for their right to survive in an immigration… Read More
Challenging Drastic Immigration Court Fee Increases That Limit Access to Justice
The Council filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s rule that would drastically increase fees across-the-board in high-stakes immigration proceedings. Read More
Groups Sue Trump Administration Over Immigration Courts Fee Increases and Access to Justice
The American Immigration Council, the National Immigration Law Center and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s new rule that drastically increases fees across-the-board in immigration proceedings. Read More
District Court Orders Immigration Agencies to Produce Immigration Case Files in First of Its Kind Class Action
Judge William H. Orrick granted summary judgment in favor of two nationwide classes suing DHS, USCIS, and ICE for failing to timely produce the class members’ immigration files (A-Files). The court ordered the agencies to clear their backlogs by responding to the more than 40,000 thousand cases outstanding within 60 days. Read More
