Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights v. Mullin – Challenging Government’s Secretive Elimination of Salient Safeguards in Expedited Removal Procedures

This case challenges the Trump administration’s secretive elimination of bedrock safeguards from the expedited removal process, a fast-track deportation procedure. Since 1997, when the expedited removal system was first put into practice, immigration officials were required to advise all noncitizens of their right to seek protection from persecution and torture and to ask all noncitizens if they fear being removed. These requirements reflected the United States’ non-refoulment treaty obligations not to remove noncitizens to countries where they could fear persecution or torture, and were reflected in specific forms immigration officials use during expedited removal, Forms I-867A and I-867B (collectively, “Form I-867”). Given the importance of these safeguards, courts have invalidated prior attempts by the government to summarily deport noncitizens without providing them notice and an opportunity to seek protection.

Yet in February 2025, the Trump administration adopted a Revised Form I-867 that eliminated the fear advisal and questions. It adopted this revised form without any public notice or announcement at the time. It was not until January 29, 2026 that the government first announced in a court filing that it had quietly adopted this revised version of the Form nearly a year earlier.

Together with the National ACLU, we filed this case in the federal district court in D.C. on behalf of non-profit organizations that have noncitizens as members and individual noncitizens seeking relief from Revised Form I-867. We allege that the Revised Form is unlawful because it violates the Due Process Clause under the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution and various provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act. We are asking the court to, among other things, vacate the Revised Form I-867, enjoin the government from employing the Revised Form, and order the government to return the individual noncitizen plaintiffs who were summarily removed pursuant to the unlawful Revised Form to the United States, parole them into the country, and allow them the opportunity to seek immigration relief.