Board of Immigration Appeals The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) is an administrative appellate body within the Executive Office for Immigration Review of the United States Department of Justice. The BIA reviews the decisions of the U.S. immigration courts, some decisions of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and immigration violation arrests by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. BIA decisions are the final administrative action in a given case, and the next stage of appeal after a BIA decision is usually in the United States courts of appeals if an appeal is allowed by statute. The BIA is located in Falls Church, Virginia, and, as of April 2009, had 14 board members, who are administrative judges appointed by the U.S. Attorney General. The size of the full BIA varies from time to time, depending on resignations, retirements and new appointments; it may have up to fifteen board members under the current authorizing legislation. Decisions issued by the BIA are by made up of three-member panels in limited circumstances.[1] Otherwise, the vast majority of cases are decided by single panel members.[2] A single panel member can also use a process called summary affirmance, used in 10 percent of cases (as of 2008), to affirm the lower court without issuing a written decision.[3] The BIA is notable in that one need not be an attorney to appear before it representing a client. However, non-attorneys must be part of a BIA-recognized organization (generally a nonprofit), and also have obtained BIA accreditation as individuals. A practice manual for appearing before the BIA is available from the U.S. Department of Justice. A handbook explaining the accreditation and recognition process is available from the nonprofit Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Board_of_Immigration_Appeals BOARD OF IMMIGRATION APPEALS The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) is the highest administrative body for interpreting and applying immigration laws. It is authorized up to 15 Board Members, including the Chairman and Vice Chairman who share responsibility for BIA management. The BIA is located at EOIR headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia. Generally, the BIA does not conduct courtroom proceedings - it decides appeals by conducting a "paper review" of cases. On rare occasions, however, the BIA hears oral arguments of appealed cases, predominately at headquarters. The BIA has been given nationwide jurisdiction to hear appeals from certain decisions rendered by immigration judges and by district directors of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in a wide variety of proceedings in which the Government of the United States is one party and the other party is an alien, a citizen, or a business firm. In addition, the BIA is responsible for the recognition of organizations and accreditation of representatives requesting permission to practice before DHS, the immigration courts, and the BIA. BIA decisions are binding on all DHS officers and immigration judges unless modified or overruled by the Attorney General or a federal court. Most BIA decisions are subject to judicial review in the federal courts. The majority of appeals reaching the BIA involve orders of removal and applications for relief from removal. Other cases before the BIA include the exclusion of aliens applying for admission to the United States, petitions to classify the status of alien relatives for the issuance of preference immigrant visas, fines imposed upon carriers for the violation of immigration laws, and motions for reopening and reconsideration of decisions previously rendered. The BIA is directed to exercise its independent judgment in hearing appeals for the Attorney General. BIA decisions designated for publication are printed in bound volumes entitled Administrative Decisions Under Immigration and Nationality Laws of the United States. https://www.justice.gov/eoir/board-of-immigration-appeals Precedent Decisions "Precedent decisions" are administrative decisions of the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO), the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), and the Attorney General, which are selected and designated as precedent by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the BIA, and the Attorney General, respectively. The Department of Justice Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) publishes precedent decisions in bound volumes entitled "Administrative Decisions Under Immigration and Nationality Laws of the United States." Precedent decisions are legally binding on the DHS components responsible for enforcing immigration laws in all proceedings involving the same issue or issues. However, precedent decisions may be modified or overruled by: The Attorney General Federal Courts Later precedent decisions Changes in the law The AAO and the BIA are not Federal courts, but their decisions are subject to judicial review in the Federal courts. Federal courts give greater deference to precedent decisions as well as to unpublished decisions in which the same legal reasoning of a precedent decision was followed. The AAO adjudicates appeals under authority delegated to the Director of USCIS by the Secretary of DHS. Prior to the AAO's formation in 1983, denied applications and petitions were appealed to one of four regional commissioners. For more information on the AAO, please visit the AAO's About Us page. The BIA is part of EOIR - a separate federal agency that is a component of the Department of Justice. The BIA has jurisdiction to hear appeals from certain decisions rendered by Immigration Judges and by DHS component offices in a wide variety of proceedings. You can view AAO and BIA precendent decisions online at the EOIR Virtual Law Library. https://www.uscis.gov/laws/precedent-decisions http://www.avvocatidirittointernazionale.com/ http://www.bertollini-oreilly.com/ http://www.simonebertollini1.com/Attorney-Profile.aspx http://www.dglitigators.com/what-is-litigation/ http://www.abogados.me/discurso-de-obama-sobre-la-accion-ejecutiva-en-espanol/