Marco Correa-Rivera v. Eric H. Holder Jr.

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Background

Marco Antonio Correa-Rivera illegally entered the United States almost thirty years ago. He surrendered to immigration authorities in 2006. At a hearing before an immigration judge (IJ), CorreaRivera conceded removability, but said he wanted to apply for cancellation of removal. See 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b)(l). The IJ ordered Correa-Rivera to file his application no later than April 6, 2007. CorreaRivera filled out the application form and gave it to his attorney, along with supporting documents. The lawyer told CorreaRivera that if he needed anything else to file the application, he’d contact him.

April 6 came and went, but the lawyer did nothing. Nor did he file anything in May, June or July. Finally, almost six months after the filing deadline had expired, the IJ deemed Correa-Rivera’s application abandoned. He did this without a hearing and without notifying CorreaRivera that his application was overdue. Correa-Rivera appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), alleging he was denied due process because his counsel was ineffective. The BIA affirmed the IJ’s decision, finding that Correa-Rivera…