Supreme Court of the United States · Official docket →
Jorge Alejandro Avalos v. United States
IFP petition · United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, No. 23-3944 · judgment December 17, 2025
Questions presented
An Assistant Field Office Director within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ordered Jorge Avalos removed from the United States under 8 U.S.C. § 1228(b). He was not appointed by a “Head[] of Department[],” as the Appointments Clause normally requires for “inferior Officers.” U.S. Const., art. II, § 2, cl. 2. The questions presented are:
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Whether a bureaucrat lacks a “continuing position established by law” merely because the disputed acts are part of his full-time job, as the Ninth Circuit held here, contrary to the conclusions of the Second and D.C. Circuits as well as the Office of Legal Counsel; and
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Whether a bureaucrat’s last-word authority over whether a noncitizen is removed from the United States constitutes significant authority under the Appointments Clause. prefix
Counsel of record
For petitioner
Jessica Agatstein
Federal Defenders of San Diego, Inc.
For respondent
D. John Sauer
Solicitor General
Proceedings
- Oct 08 2026DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 11/6/2026.
- Oct 02 2026Waiver of right of respondent United States to respond filed.
- Sep 03 2026Petition for a writ of certiorari and motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis filed. (Response due October 26, 2026)
- Jul 27 2026Application (26A116) granted by Justice Kagan extending the time to file until September 3, 2026.
- Jul 17 2026Application (26A116) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from August 4, 2026 to September 3, 2026, submitted to Justice Kagan.