Jane Doe v. Eric Holder, Jr.

MEMORANDUM

Jane and John Doe, the United States citizen minor children of an alien subject to removal, brought suit challenging the constitutionality of 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b)(l)(D), which requires an alien to establish “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” to a U.S. citizen spouse, parent, or child to qualify for cancellation of removal. The district court concluded that it had juris diction and then dismissed the action on its merits. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We conclude that the district court lacked jurisdiction, and therefore remand with directions that the action be dismissed on that basis.

Plaintiffs’ father was ordered removed from the United States. His application for cancellation of removal, on the ground that his removal would cause exceptional and extremely unusual hardship on his U.S. citizen minor children, was denied. Subsequently, Plaintiffs filed suit, alleging that the “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” standard of 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b)(l)(D) infringes on their “fundamental right ... to live with their father in the United States.” The district court granted the government’s motion to dismiss the complaint for failure to…