A federal court has blocked key parts of a new immigration appeals rule issued by the administration that would have significantly limited meaningful review of deportation cases. The rule would have forced the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) to dismiss appeals unless the full board intervened within 10 days, often before transcripts of immigration court hearings were even available, making proper review nearly impossible. The court ruled that these changes could undermine

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) held that marrying a U.S. citizen after a final removal order is not an “exceptional situation” that justifies reopening a case on the Board’s own motion (sua sponte). Case background: Respondent entered the U.S. in 2008 and overstayed. Ordered removed in 2013; BIA dismissed his appeal in 2014. Federal court denied review in 2015. He married a U.S. citizen in 2017. His I-130 was approved in 2020. In 2026, more than 10 years after the fin