Original Date Announced

Via Policy Memo 21-05, the EOIR Director revises the rules for master calendar hearings, specifically for respondents who are not detained and are represented.

Observing that most respondents in this group do not contest removability and that EOIR no longer requires applications for relief to be filed in court, the Director mandates that, in cases where a Form EOIR-28 is filed at least 15 days before the master calendar hearing, the hearing will be vacated. In lieu of the master calendar hearing, a scheduling order will be issued and will include deadlines for any written pleadings, evidence, and applications for relief. The parties will be given at least 45 days from the date of the vacated hearing to submit their filings (though the specific deadlines remain subject to the immigration judge’s discretion). Once filings have been completed, the immigration judge may proceed to issue an order or schedule the case for a merits hearing.

For non-detained, represented cases where the Form EOIR-28 is filed in less than 15 days of the master calendar hearing, the hearing will proceed as scheduled.

In recognition of the “opportunities for gamesmanship,” the memo warns that efforts to deceive the immigration judge about a respondent’s representation may constitute grounds for disciplinary action.

[ID# 1203]