Law Offices of Carl Shusterman - US Immigration Law Offices of Carl Shusterman - US Immigration

LATE AMNESTY CLAIMS
MAY END ABRUPTLY


Law Offices of Carl Shusterman
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Do you have a plastic card which states "Employment Authorization"? If the card is based on any of the late amnesty lawsuits (LULAC, CSS, Zambrano, etc.), don't count on being able to renew it again. Section 377 of the new immigration law signed by President Clinton on September 30, 1996 would end late amnesty for over 400,000 persons. Persons with late amnesty claims should seek legal assistance before they are terminated from their employment.

End of Late Amnesty

The purpose of Section 377 is to abruptly end the late amnesty lawsuits which have permitted hundreds of thousands of persons to secure work cards. The conference report to the bill states that the purpose of Section 377 is to "put an end to litigation seeking to extend the amnesty (law)..." Only those persons whose applications were submitted to INS and rejected by an "authorized legalization officer" will be able to maintain their class status. Only a tiny fraction of the persons presently covered by the late amnesty class action lawsuits would qualify under this definition.

Justice Department Moves to End Suits

On October 4, 1996, lawyers for the Justice Department cited Section 377 in seeking to have the Newman (LULAC), CSS and Zambrano suits dismissed. The motions filed by the lawyers were blunt and to the point: 
          This court should recognize that the intended target of
	  Section 377 is this court's and other district courts'
	  continuing exercise of jurisdiction over claims brought
	  by aliens who seek to extend the amnesty program...Therefore
	  the court should dismiss the (complaint), vacate all prior
	  orders, and "put an end" to this litigation once and for all.
The following week, Justice Department attorneys moved to dismiss two other late amnesty cases, Immigrant Assistance Project v. INS and Perales v. Reno.

Officials in the Justice Department expressed relief that after so many years, the INS would not be compelled to renew the work cards of illegal aliens making claims, many of which were fraudulent.

On January 16, 1998, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued the decision in the CSS v. Reno predicted by the December 5, 1997 letter by the plaintiffs' attorneys reprinted below.

Essentially, the Court ruled in favor of the government, and ordered the District Court to dismiss all of the plaintiffs' claims. Although, in the absence of proof of fraud, no CSS applicant will automatically be deported, it can be expected that after the District Court dismisses the case, the INS will no longer extend Employment Authorization Cards to CSS applicants, and may cancel all existing cards. Applicants should immediately pursue other opportunities to legalize their status.

Click here to read the full text of the court's decision.

This decision is thought to mark the beginning of the end of all late amnesty cases.

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