Correspondent
Breaking news correspondent, covers late-night developments and emergency rulings.
The First Circuit reversed and remanded a Board of Immigration Appeals decision denying adjustment of status. The court held that the Board engaged in impermissible factfinding by determining the petitioner used a false identity to avoid criminal prosecution when that specific intent was not found by the Immigration Judge.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit dismissed this appeal sua sponte for lack of jurisdiction. The court found that the district court's order was not final because it did not dispose of all claims in the case.
The Sixth Circuit affirmed an award of Black Lung Benefits Act benefits, holding that the employer failed to rebut the statutory presumption that a miner's death was caused by pneumoconiosis. The court found the administrative law judge's reliance on medical evidence establishing total disability and legal pneumoconiosis sufficient to meet the claimant's burden.
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that a financial firm's long-term contingent incentive awards do not qualify as an employee pension benefit plan under ERISA. The court held that the WealthChoice Award program constitutes an exempt bonus plan because it is designed to incentivize retention and productivity rather than systematically defer income for retirement.
The Ninth Circuit denied a petition for review of a Board of Immigration Appeals decision, ruling that the petitioner's motions to reopen and reconsider were barred by statutory time limits and the one-motion rule. The court found no exceptions applied because the petitioner failed to demonstrate changed country conditions or fundamental unfairness in his immigration proceedings.
The Ninth Circuit denied a petition for review, upholding the Board of Immigration Appeals' rejection of an immigrant's claims for cancellation of removal, asylum, and protection from torture. The court found substantial evidence supported the agency's conclusion that the petitioner failed to prove exceptional hardship to his children and did not demonstrate changed circumstances to excuse his late asylum filing.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of Social Security disability benefits, holding that the Administrative Law Judge did not abuse discretion in rejecting medical and lay testimony. The court found the ALJ properly applied the substantial evidence standard by weighing treatment duration, consistency with the record, and the claimant's insured status.
The Ninth Circuit affirmed the denial of asylum and withholding of removal because the petitioner failed to exhaust his claims regarding the Immigration Judge's nexus finding. The court also upheld the denial of Convention Against Torture relief, finding that a single unharmed threat and speculative arguments did not meet the legal burden for torture.
The Ninth Circuit denied a Salvadoran national's petition for review of an asylum denial, ruling that witnesses who merely report crimes to the police lack the social distinction required for a cognizable particular social group. The court further held that the petitioner failed to demonstrate prejudice from alleged translation errors because the asylum claim failed on independent legal grounds.
The Ninth Circuit denied the petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals' decision to deny asylum and related protections. The court held that the petitioner's evidence of harm did not rise to the level of persecution and that his proposed social groups lacked the required legal particularity or social distinction.
