A federal court granted a temporary restraining order in a suit challenging DHS refusal to follow Perez-Gonzalez v. Ashcroft, 379 F.3d 783 (9th Cir. 2004). Perez-Gonzalez is a Ninth Circuit case holding that individuals who have previously been removed or deported may apply for adjustment of status (under INA 245(i)) along with an accompanying I-212 waiver application. Pursuant to the temporary order, USCIS district offices and the AAO cannot deny any I-212 application pending in the Ninth Circuit on basis that ten years has not elapsed since the applicants last departure. In addition, DHS cannot give legal effect to an I-212 that was denied on this basis, and, thus, at least temporarily, protects qualifying I-212 applicants against reinstatement of removal under INA 241(a)(5). This order does not affect I-212 applicants outside of the Ninth Circuit. For more information about the TRO, see http://www.ailf.org/lac/tro_lit_92806.pdf.

The suit, Duran Gonzalez v. U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security, C-06-1411, was brought as a class action by the Northwest Immigrants Right Project, the American Immigration Law Foundation, and Van Der Hout, Brigagliano & Nightingale, LLP. It was filed in the Western District of Washington on September 28, 2006, and focuses on the policy as set forth in a March 31, 2006 USCIS memo intended to implement Perez-Gonzalez. See http://www.aila.org/content/default.aspx?docid=20233.