Nicole Sadighi v. Loretta E. Lynch

MEMORANDUM

Nicole Sadighi is a forty-three year-old citizen of the United Kingdom who was born in Iran. The Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) dismissed her appeal from an Immigration Judge’s denial of her applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture.

Sadighi then filed a four-paragraph motion for reconsideration with the BIA. The BIA denied the motion for reconsideration, but also sua sponte treated that same motion as a motion to reopen and subsequently denied it as well. Sadighi timely filed a petition for review of the BIA’s decision.

We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review for abuse of discretion the denial of a motion to reconsider and a motion to reopen. Cano-Merida v. INS, 311 F.3d 960, 964 (9th Cir. 2002). We grant the petition for review in part, deny in part, and remand to the BIA.

The BIA did not abuse its discretion in dismissing Sadighi’s motion for reconsideration as she did not support her motion to reconsider with any authority establishing that the BIA committed an error of law or fact as required by 8 U.S.C. § 1229a(c)(6)(C).

The BIA did abuse its discretion by sua sponte treating…