The Trump Administration’s last-minute rulemaking on refugee law hit a roadblock on January 8 when a federal district court in San Francisco granted a request from organizations that represent refugees to issue a nation-wide preliminary injunction that will stop the rule from going into effect as scheduled on January 11. District Judge James Donato found that the plaintiffs are likely to prevail on their claim that “Acting” Secretary Chad Wolf of the Department of Homeland … <Read More>
withholding of removal
2nd Circuit Rejects Gay Brazilian Man’s Refugee Claims, Despite Evidence About Anti-Gay Violence in Brazil
Opening up a gulf in reasoning with the 9th Circuit, which has insisted on a distinction between the official policies of a government and the facts on the ground in evaluating whether gay people would suffer persecution or worse in a particular country, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit affirmed a ruling by an Immigration Judge (IJ) and the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) that a gay … <Read More>
9th Circuit En Banc Panel Revives Gay Mexican’s Asylum Claim
An eleven-judge panel of the San Francisco-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit revived an HIV-positive gay Mexican man’s claim for refugee status to remain in the United States on March 8, reversing rulings by a three-judge panel of the court, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and an Immigration Judge. The opinion for the court in Bringas-Rodriguez v. Sessions, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 4077, 2017 WL 908546, was written by Judge Kim … <Read More>
7th Circuit Remands Gay Mexican’s Withholding of Removal Claim to BIA
A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit has granted a petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (BIA) decision to deny withholding of removal to a gay, HIV-positive man from Mexico, finding that the BIA had failed to comply with a regulation governing review of Immigration Judge (IJ) decisions by engaging in de novo review of facts decided by the IJ. Rosiles-Camerana v. Holder, 2013 U.S. App.
… <Read More> 9th Circuit Orders Withholding of Removal for Gay Man from Philippines
A unanimous panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, based in San Francisco, ruled on July 24 in Vitug v. Holder, 2013 Westlaw 3814772, that the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) should not have reversed a ruling by an Immigration Judge (IJ) that Dennis Vitug, a gay man from the Philippines, was entitled to remain in the United States under U.S. laws providing refuge for people subjected to persecution in their home countries. … <Read More>