Immigration

July 12, 2024
Texas DA Tells 5th Circ. He's Immune In Border Law Fight

Texas District Attorney Bill Hicks told the Fifth Circuit its June decision finding another district attorney immune from a suit over changes to the state's election code means he should be shielded from a challenge to the Lone Star State's migrant arrest law.
July 12, 2024
Judge Nixes Fraud Suit, Slams Atty's Fox Rothschild Remarks

A New Jersey federal judge threw out a fraud and malpractice suit brought against Fox Rothschild by two men who said the firm was "knowingly and willfully robbing their immigration clients" and warned their attorney over prior comments he made to Law360 regarding the case.
July 11, 2024
Ex-Judges Say 11th Circ. Wrong On Authority For Visa Petitions

Former immigration judges urged the U.S. Supreme Court to unravel the Eleventh Circuit's ruling that the courts cannot review a revoked visa petition, saying the ruling denies immigrants important judicial protections based on factors outside their control.
July 11, 2024
DACA Recipient, Credit Union Settle Home Loan Bias Suit

A beneficiary of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program has reached a settlement with an Oregon credit union to end claims that he was unlawfully denied a home equity loan based on his immigration status.
July 11, 2024
2nd Circ. OKs Israeli Man's Removal After Wife Ends Support

The Second Circuit on Thursday rejected an appeal from an Israeli man fighting deportation following a sham marriage to a U.S. citizen, finding his conditional permanent resident status ended since he didn't submit a joint petition with his spouse to remove the conditions of his status after she withdrew support.
July 11, 2024
2nd Circ. Says Unreported Violence Doesn't Doom Asylum Bid

The Second Circuit on Thursday said the Board of Immigration Appeals must reconsider an asylum bid from a Honduran woman claiming family abuse and rape by a criminal, finding that evidence of the difficulties women face in reporting violence and the government's ineffective response to such reports was ignored.
July 10, 2024
3rd Circ. Says Pretrial Detention Bars Bid For Removal Relief

A split Third Circuit on Wednesday refused to revive a Honduran man's bid for deportation relief, saying the over 1,000 days he spent in detention before being sentenced for sexually assaulting his stepdaughter barred him from showing good moral character.
July 10, 2024
ACLU Says Vetting Policy Ensnared Innocent Immigrants

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has a secret vetting program that it has used for more than 15 years to keep certain green card and citizenship applications in "immigration purgatory," the American Civil Liberties Union announced Wednesday in a white paper.
July 10, 2024
GOP Bombards Agencies With Demands After Chevron's End

Republican leaders of major congressional committees Wednesday demanded details from dozens of agencies on policies suddenly shrouded in uncertainty after U.S. Supreme Court conservatives overturned the so-called Chevron doctrine, which for 40 years gave regulators flexibility in rulemaking and advantages in related litigation.
July 10, 2024
4th Circ. Says Parole Entry Did Not Interrupt Residency Status

The Fourth Circuit ruled that a Ghanaian national retained his status as a lawful permanent resident and is therefore eligible for U.S. citizenship, even though border officials refused to admit him into the country following a misdemeanor conviction for embezzlement.
July 10, 2024
African Student Visa Denials Need Investigating, Experts Say

New data from the U.S. Department of State backs up what immigration attorneys have long suspected for years: African students are denied visas at higher rates than students from other regions, showing a need for greater scrutiny of the student visa process.
July 10, 2024
DOL Can't Stop Discovery Disclosures In Fishery Wage Suit

The U.S. Department of Labor didn't show how a Mississippi federal court erred in ordering the agency to turn over the identities of some migrant workers who participated in the department's investigation of a fishery, the court ruled Wednesday, standing by its earlier decision.
July 10, 2024
Indiana AG Looks To End City Law Limiting ICE Cooperation

The Indiana attorney general sued the city of East Chicago in a state court, looking to force the municipality to drop a policy that restricts local officials' and businesses' ability to assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
July 09, 2024
'Stop Right There': Judge Slams King County Deportation Args

A Ninth Circuit panel on Tuesday criticized King County's argument that its executive order banning deportation flights from a Seattle airport did not force a fuel supplier to stop servicing the flights, with one judge calling it preposterous.
July 09, 2024
Philly EB-5 Investors Can Seek Visa Outside Court, Panel Says

The D.C. Circuit on Tuesday found three Chinese EB-5 investors who sought to fast-track a visa by putting their money into a Philadelphia transit project can still do so without litigation in a decision backing a trial court ruling dismissing their case.
July 09, 2024
Ex-DOJ Atty Tells Guo Jury Of Illicit Extradition Campaign

Prominent Chinese Communist Party critic Miles Guo capped off his defense to $1 billion fraud charges Tuesday with testimony from a former U.S. Department of Justice attorney, who admitted to participating in a plot to lobby the U.S. government for Guo's extradition to China.
July 09, 2024
McDermott Lands 22-Year Latham Securities Litigator In LA

McDermott Will & Emery has brought in the global co-chair of Latham & Watkins LLP's securities litigation and professional liability practice group to join its Los Angeles office.
July 09, 2024
DOL Says It Can Regulate Foreign Farmworkers' Wages

The U.S. Department of Labor has argued that it has had the authority to regulate wages for foreign H-2A farmworkers for about 40 years, telling a Georgia federal court that 17 Republican attorneys general and two entities cannot halt a rule that just went into effect.
July 09, 2024
Buchalter Debuts Immigration Group, Adds 2 Karr Tuttle Attys

Buchalter PC has hired two attorneys for its Seattle office to complement its new immigration practice group.
July 08, 2024
Migrants Want Another Try In Martha's Vineyard Flight Suit

Several migrants who claim they were tricked into boarding flights to Martha's Vineyard have asked a Massachusetts federal judge to let them file an amended suit in an effort to cure the jurisdictional issues that doomed the initial complaint in March.
July 08, 2024
Federal Circuit Doubts Impropriety Of $4K H-1B Fraud Fee

A Federal Circuit panel seemed unpersuaded Monday by an argument from software companies that a $4,000 fraud fee for H-1B visa petitions does not apply to noncitizens in the U.S. seeking to change their nonimmigrant visa status to H-1B.
July 08, 2024
8th Circ. Won't Review Immigration Hardship Determination

A split Eighth Circuit panel held Monday that it can't review whether a Mexican man's U.S. citizen children will experience extreme hardship if he's removed, saying the underlying decision denying him removal relief is discretionary and therefore shielded from judicial review.
July 08, 2024
Amazon Must Face Podcast Defamation Suit, ICE Doc Says

A former physician at a Georgia immigration facility who says he was falsely accused of performing forced hysterectomies on detainees has urged a federal judge not to let Amazon and podcast publisher Wondery distance themselves from a podcast episode that dubbed him "The Uterus Collector."
July 05, 2024
How Reshaped Circuit Courts Are Faring At The High Court

Seminal rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court's latest term will reshape many facets of American society in the coming years. Already, however, the rulings offer glimpses of how the justices view specific circuit courts, which have themselves been reshaped by an abundance of new judges.
July 05, 2024
Breaking Down The Vote: The High Court Term In Review

The U.S. Supreme Court's lethargic pace of decision-making this term left the justices to issue a slew of highly anticipated and controversial rulings during the term's final week — rulings that put the court's ideological divisions on vivid display. Here, Law360 takes a data dive into the numbers behind this court term.

Expert Analysis

In The World Of Legal Ethics, 10 Trends To Note From 2023

Lucian Pera at Adams and Reese and Trisha Rich at Holland & Knight identify the top legal ethics trends from 2023 — including issues related to hot documents, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity — that lawyers should be aware of to put their best foot forward.
What's Ahead For Immigrant Employee Rights Enforcement

The U.S. Department of Justice’s increased enforcement related to immigration-based employment discrimination is coupled with pending constitutional challenges to administrative tribunals, suggesting employers should leverage those headwinds when facing investigations or class action-style litigation, say attorneys at Jones Day.
How Attorneys Can Be More Efficient This Holiday Season

Attorneys should consider a few key tips to speed up their work during the holidays so they can join the festivities — from streamlining the document review process to creating similar folder structures, says Bennett Rawicki at Hilgers Graben.
How Int'l Student-Athlete Law Would Change The NIL Game

Recently proposed legislation to allow international student-athletes the opportunity to profit from their name, image and likeness without violating their F-1 nonimmigrant student visa status represents a pivotal step in NIL policy, and universities must assess and adapt their approaches to accommodate unique immigration concerns, say attorneys at Phelps Dunbar.
Series

Children's Book Writing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Becoming a children's book author has opened doors to incredible new experiences of which I barely dared to dream, but the process has also changed my life by serving as a reminder that strong writing, networking and public speaking skills are hugely beneficial to a legal career, says Shaunna Bailey at Sheppard Mullin.
How Clients May Use AI To Monitor Attorneys

Excerpt from Practical Guidance

Artificial intelligence tools will increasingly enable clients to monitor and evaluate their counsel’s activities, so attorneys must clearly define the terms of engagement and likewise take advantage of the efficiencies offered by AI, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.
How AI Executive Order Aims To Compete For Foreign Talent

Immigration provisions within the Biden administration's executive order on artificial intelligence take a strategic approach to promoting the U.S. as a destination for AI and STEM talent by streamlining visa processing, enhancing educational and exchange programs, and improving current visa programs and pathways to permanent residency, says Eric Bord at Morgan Lewis.
Series

The Pop Culture Docket: Judge D'Emic On Moby Grape

The 1968 Moby Grape song "Murder in My Heart for the Judge" tells the tale of a fictional defendant treated with scorn by the judge, illustrating how much the legal system has evolved in the past 50 years, largely due to problem-solving courts and the principles of procedural justice, says Kings County Supreme Court Administrative Judge Matthew D'Emic.
Series

Performing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer

The discipline of performing live music has directly and positively influenced my effectiveness as a litigator — serving as a reminder that practice, intuition and team building are all important elements of a successful law practice, says Jeff Wakolbinger at Bryan Cave.
Expect CFPB Flex Over Large Nonbank Payment Cos.

A recent enforcement action and a new rule proposal from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau indicate a growing focus on the nonbank payment ecosystem, especially larger participants, in 2024, say Felix Shipkevich and Jessica Livingston at Shipkevich.
Breaking Down High Court's New Code Of Conduct

The U.S. Supreme Court recently adopted its first-ever code of conduct, and counsel will need to work closely with clients in navigating its provisions, from gift-giving to recusal bids, say Phillip Gordon and Mateo Forero at Holtzman Vogel.
What New DHS Cybersecurity Policy Means For Bid Protests

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's recently unveiled policy of factoring cybersecurity self-assessments into its overall evaluation of contractors could raise novel bid protest considerations for offerors in both the pre-award and post-award contexts, say Amy Hoang at Seyfarth and Sandeep Kathuria at L3Harris Technologies.
Opinion

Legal Profession Gender Parity Requires Equal Parental Leave

To truly foster equity in the legal profession and to promote attorney retention, workplaces need to better support all parents, regardless of gender — starting by offering equal and robust parental leave to both birthing and non-birthing parents, says Ali Spindler at Irwin Fritchie.
Series

Writing Thriller Novels Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Authoring several thriller novels has enriched my work by providing a fresh perspective on my privacy practice, expanding my knowledge, and keeping me alert to the next wave of issues in an increasingly complex space — a reminder to all lawyers that extracurricular activities can help sharpen professional instincts, says Reece Hirsch at Morgan Lewis.
What Lawyers Must Know About Calif. State Bar's AI Guidance

Initial recommendations from the State Bar of California regarding use of generative artificial intelligence by lawyers have the potential to become a useful set of guidelines in the industry, covering confidentiality, supervision and training, communications, discrimination and more, say attorneys at Debevoise.