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Judge rebuffs attempt to hide identity of ICE officer in Fitchburg arrest
Following multiple unsuccessful motions by the federal government to conceal the identity of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer accused in a lawsuit of strangling a Fitchburg man unconscious, the officer has been named and summoned to court.
SJC to weigh discipline in Judge Joseph ethics case
The Supreme Judicial Court will hear arguments on whether to discipline Judge Shelley Joseph over ICE-related conduct and courtroom recording violations.
Trump administration to re-terminate legal status of migrants who used Biden-era app
The Trump administration plans to re-terminate legal status of migrants granted parole under Biden-era CBP One app, challenging a Boston federal judge’s ruling.
Immigration – Gangs – Political opinion
Where the Board of Immigration Appeals denied applications for asylum and withholding of removal, the board’s decision should be vacated because there is no categorical bar to political opinion claims resting on resistance to gang recruitment or opposition to gangs.
Immigration – Habeas corpus – Bond hearing
Where a habeas corpus petition has been filed contending that the respondents have violated the petitioner’s statutory and due process rights by refusing to grant him a bond hearing, the factors set forth in Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319, 335 (1976), weigh in favor of providing the petitioner with a bond hearing as “an appropriate and minimally invasive additional procedure” to protect h[...]
Immigration – False ID – Adjustment of status
Where the Board of Immigration Appeals reversed a petitioner’s adjustment of status, the BIA engaged in impermissible fact-finding regarding the petitioner’s intent when he provided the police with a license bearing a false name, so a remand must be ordered.
Immigration – Delay – Visa
Where a complaint has been filed alleging an unreasonable delay in scheduling a consulate interview for a visa petition that has been pending since 2022, a motion to dismiss that complaint should be allowed as to a due process claim but denied under the Administrative Procedures Act, as the defendants have a mandatory, non-discretionary duty to adjudicate the visa application without unreasonable [...]
Immigration – Visas – International students
Where plaintiffs have challenged the federal government’s actions during the so-called “Student Criminal Alien Initiative” (SCAI), the defendants’ motion to dismiss should be allowed as to Count V, alleging that the U.S. Department of State’s policy of sending communications to international students whose visas were revoked is arbitrary and capricious and contrary to law, but otherwise [...]
Administrative – TPS designation – Ethiopia
Where a complaint has been filed challenging the termination of Ethiopia’s “Temporary Protected Status” (TPS) designation, the plaintiffs’ motion to postpone the effective date of the termination pending resolution of the merits should be granted because the defendants terminated Ethiopia’s TPS designation without regard for the process delineated by Congress.
Immigration – Detention – Adjustment-of-status interview
Where a plaintiff has moved for a temporary restraining order to prevent the government from detaining him at an upcoming adjustment-of-status interview with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, his motion should be denied because he has not shown a likelihood of success as to any of his legal claims.
Immigration – Habeas corpus – Bond hearing
Where a petitioner who has been detained since he was arrested for and charged with assault and battery on a police officer, his petition for habeas corpus relief should be granted because requiring mandatory detention based solely on his arrest and charge — without the opportunity for a bond hearing or any initial procedural protections — violates his Fifth Amendment due process rights.
Trump administration cannot nix legal status of 5,000 Ethiopians, judge rules
A federal judge in Boston halted the Trump administration's attempt to end Temporary Protected Status for over 5,000 Ethiopians living in the U.S.
Verdicts & Settlements
- Injury during baby’s adenoidectomy leads to stroke
- Construction worker’s hand caught in cement mixer
- Worker trapped in freezer, dies during steam cleaning
- Pedestrian, 69, hit by motor vehicle while in crosswalk
- Four-vehicle pileup leaves driver with spinal cord injury
- Nursing home staff blamed for kidney-failure death
- Pharmacy’s late delivery blamed for patient’s death
- Man, 25, drowns after swimming lesson at fitness club
Opinion Digests
- Jurisdiction – Forum selection clause – Non-signatory
- Criminal – Responsibility
- Attorneys – Lien
- Landlord and tenant – Default judgment
- Zoning – Constructive grant – Comprehensive permit
- Fraud – False Claims Act – Settlement share
- Civil practice – Discovery – Cybersecurity
