Overview
- Solicitor General D. John Sauer urged the Supreme Court to block a ruling that lets immigration judges pursue a First Amendment challenge in federal court, warning of widespread uncertainty without intervention.
- At least eight judges in New York were dismissed this week, contributing to roughly 100 firings or forced departures since January and reducing the bench by about 16% from early-year levels.
- The Justice Department has loosened hiring rules, rebranded recruitment as a search for “deportation judges,” and is tapping up to 600 military attorneys for temporary assignments.
- Former judge Tania Nemer filed a Title VII lawsuit alleging discriminatory firing, citing a September stance by federal officials that immigration judges can be removed at will despite civil rights protections.
- Democrats proposed new guardrails for temporary appointments and some lawmakers pressed to move immigration courts out of the executive branch, as the backlog hovers around 3.4 million cases.