Sessions Attacks Administrative Closures by Immigration Judges

Attorney Jeff Sessions has launched an investigation into the usage of administrative closure by immigration judges in deportation cases. This little-known procedural maneuver allows undocumented immigrants to remain in the U.S. without formally closing their cases, thus leaving them in a type of legal limbo. Essentially, the deportation case simply remains pending while eligible immigrants file for citizenship, permanent residency, or other type of legal status. Critics of the procedure, including Sessions, argue that it permits select immigrants to remain in the U.S. longer than they should. Sessions has questioned the authority of immigration judges to utilize administrative closure and whether he should end the practice altogether. Sessions claims that the move is necessary to speed up the deportation process, increase efficiency, and eliminate the backlog. In order to challenge the practice, Sessions intervened into the deportation case of one immigrant, an authority that attorneys general have utilized in the past, although sparingly and typically involving much more narrow issues of policy. If Sessions opts to discontinue this practice, approximately 350,000 administratively closed cases could reopen, thus substantially increasing the existing backlog of approximately 650,000 pending immigration cases. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, immigration judges closed more than 180,000 during four years of the Obama administration, which was more than were closed during the previous 22 years. The Board of Immigration Appeals paved the way for increased usage of administrative closure after it ruled in 2012 that neither attorneys for the Department of Homeland Security nor immigrants trying to remain in the country could stop an immigration judge from closing deportation cases. If you or a loved one has a case in administrative closure or a deportation case in process, you need immediate legal assistance. We are the California deportation defense lawyers to whom you can turn if you or a loved one are facing deportation proceedings, no matter whether you are facing criminal charges, you have a criminal conviction, or you simply have no legal status. Regardless of the complexity or difficulty of the situation, Landerholm Immigration, A.P.C. has the experience, knowledge, and skills to advocate on behalf of you and your family throughout the course of any deportation proceedings. Contact our office today and let us answer all of your questions about any aspect of deportation proceedings .