As the immigration executive action remains in legal limbo, the Obama Administration and U.S. Justice Department are reportedly ramping up their efforts to save the programs and deportation relief that would have been provided by this action. In fact, some are calling their most recent actions to further the immigration executive action an “aggressive” legal strategy.
Currently, the immigration executive action, which would have provided deportation relief to millions of undocumented immigrants in the U.S., remains blocked by a preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen (of Texas) issued on February 16th.
This injunction stopped the immigration executive action from proceeding – just 48 hours before USCIS was ready to start accepting applications for deportation relief – due to concerns regarding the constitutionality of the immigration executive action. Texas, along with 25 other states, is pursuing a lawsuit to permanently prevent the immigration executive action from taking effect in the U.S.
The Latest Legal Moves to Push the Immigration Executive Action Forward
Specifically, here’s what the Obama Administration and Justice Department have done recently to try to unblock the immigration executive action and get it into effect ASAP:
- The Fifth Circuit Court, which is overseeing this controversial legal battle, has been asked to rule on the Justice Department’s request for a stay on Judge Hanen’s preliminary injunction within 14 days.
- While the Justice Department has specifically requested that the stay be applied nationwide, it has also made the suggestion of keeping the injunction in place only in Texas and/or in the 26 U.S. states that are part of the lawsuit to permanently block the immigration executive action.
As Marshall Fitz, vice president for immigration policy at the Center for American Progress, has explained in noting the importance of urgently resolving this matter, “any delay is extremely harmful for the populations that are preparing to come forward and stabilize the current dynamics in their lives.”
Just how the Fifth Circuit Court will rule on this matter – and whether this legal battle will end up going before the Supreme Court – remains to be seen. As more news on this important issue becomes available, we’ll continue bringing you the latest updates in our blog. So, stay posted…
Los Angeles Immigration Lawyers at the Hanlon Law Group, P.C.
Do you need help with any immigration issues? If so, you can turn to the Los Angeles immigration attorneys at the Hanlon Law Group, P.C. For more than 15 years, our lawyers have been successfully representing clients in various types of immigration cases, including those that involve the most basic immigration applications to those associated with extremely complicated federal court litigation.
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