Naseem Salman Al-Harbi v. Immigration and Naturalization Service

ORDER

In 1996 Naseem Salman Al-Harbi was brought by American forces to United States territory from northern Iraq, a refuge of Iraqi insurgents hostile to the reign of Saddam Hussein, as part of a large evacuation effort led by United States government agencies. On the merits, we previously granted Al-Harbi’s Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals. See Al-Harbi v. INS, 242 F.3d 882 (9th Cir.2001). We must now decide whether Al-Harbi’s request for attorneys’ fees was timely filed, and if so, whether he is entitled to fees. We conclude that the request was timely, but that no fees should be awarded.

BACKGROUND

In our decision filed on March 9, 2001, Al-Harbi prevailed on his Petition for Review. The government had until April 23, 2001 to file a petition for panel rehearing or for rehearing en banc, but the government declined to file either request. The mandate was issued seven days later, on April 30, 2001. The 90 days in which the government could have appealed to the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari ran on June 7, 2001. See 28 U.S.C. § 2101 (c) (allowing the government to petition for certiorari “within ninety days after entry of ...…