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Amina Bouarfa v. Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, et al.
Paid petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, No. 22-12429 · judgment July 28, 2023
Before the decision, about 4× the 4.1% base rate. The model weighted this up for counsel who has won certiorari before, a circuit split argued in the petition, and a dissent in the court below (flagged in the petition).
Question presented
When considering whether to approve a petition for an immigrant visa, the government must adhere to certain nondiscretionary criteria. See, e.g., 8 U.S.C. § 1154 (c) (providing that "[n]o petition shall be approved" if the individual seeking a visa has previously entered a marriage "for the purpose of evading the immigration laws"). When a visa petition is denied based on a petitioner's failure to satisfy such a nondiscretionary requirement, it is generally understood that the petitioner has a right to judicial review of that decision. Once a visa petition has been approved, the government has the power to revoke approval of the visa petition for "good and sufficient cause" pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1155. The circuits are in open conflict over whether judicial review is available when the government revokes an approved petition on the ground that it had initially misapplied nondiscretionary criteria during the approval process. The Sixth and Ninth Circuits hold that judicial review is available under these circumstances, but the Second, Third, Seventh, and now the Eleventh Circuit all hold that revocations are "discretionary" decisions for which there is no right to judicial review, even when they are based on a misapplication of the same nondiscretionary criteria that would be reviewable if the petition had originally been denied. The question presented is: Whether a visa petitioner may obtain judicial review when an approved petition is revoked on the basis of nondiscretionary criteria.
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Samir Ibrahim Deger-Sen
Latham & Watkins LLP
For respondent
Elizabeth B. Prelogar
Solicitor General
Case
Conference history
Distributed for 3 conferences
Amicus briefs
1 cert-stage · 8 merits
(6 supporting pet./neither, 2 respondent)
Argument & decision
Argued October 15, 2024 — Samir Deger-Sen · Colleen R. Sinzdak. Audio and transcript
Decided December 10, 2024. Opinion by Jackson.
Proceedings
- Jan 13 2025Judgment Issued.
- Dec 10 2024Adjudged to be AFFIRMED. Jackson, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court.
- Oct 15 2024Argued. For petitioner: Samir Deger-Sen, New York, N. Y. For respondents: Colleen R. Sinzdak, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C.
- Sep 23 2024Reply of petitioner Amina Bouarfa filed. (Distributed)
- Aug 29 2024Brief amicus curiae of Immigration Reform Law Institute filed. (Distributed)
- Aug 28 2024Brief amicus curiae of Thomas Fuller Ogden filed. (Distributed)
- Aug 22 2024Brief of Mayorkas, Alejandro not accepted for filing.(Duplicate submission) (August 29, 2024)
- Aug 22 2024Brief of respondents Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, et al. filed. (Distributed)
- Aug 13 2024Record received from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. The record is electronic and is available on PACER.
- Aug 08 2024CIRCULATED
- Aug 05 2024Record received electronically from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida and available with the Clerk.
- Jul 29 2024Record requested from the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
- Jul 26 2024SET FOR ARGUMENT on Tuesday, October 15, 2024.
- Jul 10 2024Brief amici curiae of Administrative and Immigration Law Professors filed.
- Jul 10 2024Brief amici curiae of National Immigrant Justice Center, et al. filed.
- Jul 10 2024Brief amici curiae of Former Executive Office for Immigration Review Judges filed.
- Jul 10 2024Brief amici curiae of American Immigrant Investor Alliance, American Lending Center Holdings and Century American Regional Center filed.
- Jul 10 2024Brief amici curiae of Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, National Immigration Litigation Alliance, American Immigration Council filed.
- Jul 10 2024Brief amici curiae of The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Florida filed.
- Jul 03 2024Brief of petitioner Amina Bouarfa filed.
- Jul 03 2024Joint appendix filed. (Statement of costs filed)
- May 13 2024Motion to extend the time to file the briefs on the merits granted. The time to file the joint appendix and petitioner's brief on the merits is extended to and including July 3, 2024. The time to file respondents' brief on the merits is extended to and including August 22, 2024.
- May 07 2024Motion for an extension of time to file the briefs on the merits filed.
- Apr 29 2024Petition GRANTED.
- Apr 29 2024As Rule 34.6 provides, “If the Court schedules briefing and oral argument in a case that was governed by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2(c) or Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 49.1(c), the parties shall submit electronic versions of all prior and subsequent filings with this Court in the case, subject to [applicable] redaction rules.” Subsequent party and amicus filings in the case should now be submitted through the Court’s electronic filing system, with any necessary redactions.
- Apr 22 2024DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/26/2024.
- Apr 15 2024DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/19/2024.
- Mar 20 2024DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 4/12/2024.
- Mar 19 2024Reply of petitioner Amina Bouarfa filed. (Distributed)
- Feb 29 2024Brief of respondent Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, et al. in opposition filed.
- Jan 23 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including February 29, 2024.
- Jan 22 2024Motion to extend the time to file a response from February 1, 2024 to February 29, 2024, submitted to The Clerk.
- Jan 02 2024Brief amici curiae of Former Executive Office for Immigration Review Judges filed.
- Dec 08 2023Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including February 1, 2024.
- Dec 07 2023Motion to extend the time to file a response from January 2, 2024 to February 1, 2024, submitted to The Clerk.
- Nov 27 2023Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due January 2, 2024)
- Nov 27 2023Pursuant to Rule 34.6 and Paragraph 9 of the Guidelines for the Submission of Documents to the Supreme Court's Electronic Filing System, filings in this case should be submitted in paper form only, and should not be submitted through the Court's electronic filing system.
- Oct 18 2023Application (23A348) granted by Justice Thomas extending the time to file until November 27, 2023.
- Oct 13 2023Application (23A348) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from October 26, 2023 to December 11, 2023, submitted to Justice Thomas.