Practice Advisories & Brief Bank
Public immigration practice advisories, sample briefs, template motions, amicus briefs, and government guidance, organized in one searchable index and linked to the original host.
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| Resource | Source | Topics | Date | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Attorneys, Advise Your Clients of Their RightsLast Updated February 11, 2025 The Trump administration has been targeting immigrant and LGBTQ communities through a slate of Executive Orders designed to erase transgender, non-binary and intersex identities, decimate asylum and refugee protections, and fast track mass deportations. The orders are unprecedented in their scope. Many are blatantly illegal, some unconstitutional, but virtually all harm the LGBTQ and HIV-positive immigrants, families, and communities we serve. Our clients are under Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from Immigration Equality on Asylum; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
Immigration Equality National Direct PDF available |
Asylum
Removal defense
Cross-forum
|
Feb 11, 2025 | |
Know Your VAWA Options: Self-Petition Compared with Special Rule Cancellation of RemovalChart-based comparison of VAWA self-petitions and VAWA special-rule cancellation of removal, with eligibility and strategy differences called out side by side. Why it matters: Good counseling tool when the real question is not whether relief exists, but which VAWA pathway makes the most sense in the client’s posture. |
ASISTA National |
VAWA / U / T
Removal defense
Family-based practice
USCIS
Immigration court
|
Feb 1, 2025 | |
Seeking Stays of RemovalA stay of removal prevents the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from deporting a noncitizen from the United States while they continue to challenge their removal order or pursue an immigration benefit or humanitarian protection. This practice advisory discusses the law, procedure, and practical tips for seeking a stay of removal from DHS, immigration judges, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and the U.S. courts of appeals. Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Removal Defense; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Removal defense
BIA appeals
Evidence and procedure
Immigration court
BIA
|
Jan 17, 2025 | |
Judicial Review of Visa Decisions After the Supreme Court’s Decision in Department of State v. MuñozIn Department of State v. Muñoz , 602 U.S. 899 (2024), the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that a U.S. citizen and her noncitizen spouse had no access to judicial review of a consular officer’s denial of an immigrant visa. The Court held that a U.S. citizen has no “fundamental liberty interest” i n her spouse’s admission to the United States. This practice advisory, by the American Immigration Council, the International Refugee Assistance Project, and the Consular Accountability Project, is intende Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Asylum; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Asylum
Removal defense
Family-based practice
Federal court
Consular practice
VAWA / U / T
Entry and admission
Court of appeals
Consular processing
|
Jan 15, 2025 | |
ASISTA Practice Advisory: Addressing Late-Breaking Inadmissibility Grounds for U Visa BeneficiariesAddresses strategy when inadmissibility issues surface late in a U-visa case and explains how to preserve the case rather than treating the new issue as fatal. Why it matters: Worth including because late-breaking inadmissibility problems create avoidable denials when counsel does not adjust the waiver strategy quickly enough. |
ASISTA National |
VAWA / U / T
Waivers
USCIS
|
Aug 8, 2024 | |
Litigation for Business Immigration PractitionersThis Practice Advisory has information practitioners need to assess whether filing suit in federal court is the right option for challenging an employment-based petition denial. Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Employment; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Employment
Federal court
Cross-forum
|
Jan 8, 2024 | |
Practice Alert: Padilla v. ICE and Delays in Credible Fear InterviewsThis practice advisory discusses the law, procedure, and practical tips for seeking a stay of removal from DHS, immigration judges, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and the U.S. courts of appeals. Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Removal Defense; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Removal defense
BIA appeals
Evidence and procedure
Immigration court
BIA
|
Jan 8, 2024 | |
Common Tools of Statutory Construction for Criminal Removal GroundsThis practice advisory describes some of the common tools of statutory construction to assist practitioners in advocating for narrow definitions of generic criminal removal grounds before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and the U.S. courts of appeals. To determine whether a criminal conviction renders a noncitizen removable under federal immigration law, federal courts and the BIA generally employ the categorical approach. Under this approach, adjudicators consider whether the elements of Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Removal Defense; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Removal defense
Crimes and categorical approach
BIA appeals
Federal court
BIA
|
Nov 28, 2023 | |
Practice Alert: Overview of the Supreme Court’s Decision in Pugin v. GarlandOn June 22, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court issued Pugin v. Garland , 143 S. Ct. 1833 (2023), an immigration decision addressing the generic definition of the obstruction of justice aggravated felony ground at 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43)(S). The Court held that a conviction may be an offense “relating to obstruction of justice,” even if it does not require that an investigation or proceeding be pending or reasonably foreseeable. In doing so, Pugin reversed favorable case law in the Ninth Circuit, Valenz Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Crimes; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council 9th Circuit Direct PDF available |
Crimes and categorical approach
Court of appeals
|
Aug 22, 2023 | |
A Step-by-Step Guide to Filing a FOIA LawsuitThis Practice Advisory provides immigration practitioners with step-by-step instructions a bout how to file a laws uit under the Freedom of Information Act. The Advisory explains the preliminary steps that need to be completed before filing the lawsuit, the appropriate parties in a FOIA case, the proper venue for filing, the types of claims litigants may bring, how to file the complaint and supporting documents, and what to expect after the law suit is filed . Additionally, the Advisory contains Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Removal Defense; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Removal defense
Federal court
Federal district court
|
Jun 20, 2023 | |
Practice Tip: Opposing a Motion to Dismiss Asserting the Consular Nonreviewability Doctrine in Agency Delay CasesPractitioners who challenge delays in visa processing often face a motion to dismiss based on the consular nonreviewability doctrine. This practice tip examines the scope of the doctrine. It provides arguments, with supporting documentation, to oppose common situations that the government claims are final, nonreviewable decisions. It also discusses the advantages of an Administrative Procedure Act cause of action and offers considerations for demonstrating unreasonable delay. The practice tip al Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Removal Defense; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Removal defense
Consular practice
Evidence and procedure
Consular processing
|
Dec 16, 2022 | |
Nightingale v. USCIS and FOIA Requests for Immigration Case Files (A-Files)This practice advisory explains 1) the ways to submit a FOIA request for a client’s immigration records, or A-File, 2) provides suggestions for avoiding agency rejections of the requests, and 3) identifies issues related to the Nightingale injunction that class counsel are monitoring. Why it matters: Useful as a practitioner-oriented overview from American Immigration Council on Evidence / Procedure; review the source material for the most current authority and procedure. |
American Immigration Council National Direct PDF available |
Evidence and procedure
USCIS
|
Dec 15, 2022 |