Supreme Court
New Lawsuit Challenges Preliminary Injunction in United States v. Texas
In February 2015, a court in Texas issued a nationwide preliminary injunction in the case challenging the expansion of President’s Obama’s Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) initiative and the launch of Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA). The injunction effectively halted implementation of… Read More
Supreme Court to Consider Whether DHS Can Subject Noncitizens to Prolonged, Mandatory Detention
Last month, the Supreme Court announced that, in fall 2016, it will hear arguments in Jennings v. Rodriguez, a challenge to the prolonged detention of noncitizens in removal proceedings. At issue is whether the government can keep a noncitizen who is fighting her deportation case locked up for however… Read More
Supreme Court Issues Disappointing Split Decision in United States v. Texas
The Supreme Court issued a 4-4 decision in United States v. Texas, the case challenging expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents (DAPA). This means that the Fifth Circuit’s decision upholding the preliminary injunction against these initiatives will stand. The… Read More
Texas’ Distorted View of the Legal Basis for DAPA and Expanded DACA
On April 18, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in United States v. Texas, a case brought by 26 states to challenge President Obama’s deferred action initiatives, known as expanded Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (expanded DACA) and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent… Read More
GOP Perfects Its Formula for Losing the Latino Vote
After each of the last few national elections, Republican strategists prognosticated that despite their low support among Latino voters, the Republican Party could begin to win them over by talking to them about kitchen-table issues like the economy and job creation. However, they also warned that if the party… Read More
Immigration Court Backlog Shows No Sign of Shrinking
The latest figures show that the number of cases pending in immigration court continue to grow. According to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), there were 486,206 cases in the backlog as of the end of March. This is almost 30,000 more pending cases than Executive Office of Immigration… Read More
What Are the Next Steps at the Supreme Court in U.S. v. Texas?
The oral arguments in U.S. v. Texas are now complete and dozens of news articles and analyses have attempted to predict what the Court will decide. However, all that truly matters is the final decision rendered by the eight sitting Justices. This begs the questions of when and… Read More
Understanding Justice Kennedy’s “Upside Down” Argument in U.S. v. Texas
On April 18, the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in United States v. Texas, a case brought by 26 states to challenge President Obama’s frozen deferred action programs, known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals Plus (expanded DACA) and Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and… Read More
Digesting the Argument in U.S. v. Texas: What Is Lawful Presence and Why Does It Not Mean What It Sounds Like?
The oral argument in United States v. Texas shined a light on the confusion between the term “lawful presence” and what it means to have a legal immigration status in the United States. Early in the argument, Chief Justice Roberts noted that in its brief, the United States asserted… Read More
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