Due Process/Procedural Rights

The Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments protect everyone’s right to due process of law. This right is foundational; when the government denies fair treatment to particular individuals or operates with unfair procedures, it makes it impossible to enforce the other rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The ACLU works to protect our rights to due process everywhere in settings as varied as the local courts, federal workplaces, schools, and Guantanamo and Afghanistan.

Due Process

The Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments protect everyone’s right to due process of law. This right is foundational; when the government denies fair treatment to particular individuals or operates with unfair procedures, it makes it impossible to enforce the other rights guaranteed by the Constitution. The ACLU works to protect our rights to due process everywhere in settings as varied as the local courts, federal workplaces, schools, and Guantanamo and Afghanistan.

The Latest

Press Release
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Community Members and Immigrants’ Rights Organizations Take Trump Administration to Court to Stop Illegal Arrests of Immigrants

Four Washington, D.C. community members and the national immigration organization CASA sued the Trump administration today on behalf of themselves and a class of similarly-situated individuals, alleging that the federal government has engaged in a pattern of illegal immigration arrests since August.
Press Release
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Federal Court Blocks Trump Administration Fast-Track Deportation Policy

This ruling is a vital reminder that due process is not optional. Expanding expedited removal would have exposed thousands to potential wrongful deportation, without even the chance to make their case.
Press Release
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St. Elizabeths Hospital Settles Case with Patients Who Endured Life Threatening Conditions During Water Crisis and COVID-19

“This settlement will help ensure that the government meets its constitutional obligation to provide a safe environment for the patients of St. Elizabeths.”
News & Commentary
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3 Ways Courtwatch DC Challenged Injustice in 2022

2022 was a special year for Courtwatch DC. Officially launching the program, training volunteers, and watching the courts – we have a lot to be proud of.
Court Case
Apr 03, 2025

PERKINS COIE LLP V. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE; JENNER & BLOCK LLP. V. U.S. DEP’T OF JUSTICE; WILMERHALE V. EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT – OPPOSING TRUMP’S EFFORT TO BREAK THE RULE OF LAW

On March 6, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order called “Addressing Risks from Perkins Coie LLP.” Perkins Coie is a major national law firm, headquartered in Seattle. The President declared that Perkins Coie engaged in “dishonest and dangerous activity,” had “manufactured” evidence in connection with the Clinton 2016 presidential campaign, had engaged in “a pattern” of “egregious activity” by challenging (and defending) election laws, and had “racially discriminated against” its employees and applicants by pursuing diversity an inclusivity. To “address” these “risks,” he suspended the security clearances for all firm employees, ordered all federal agencies to terminate any contracts with the law firm’s clients, and ordered firm employees to be denied access to federal buildings and meetings or other engagement with federal employees—measures that would have the effect of putting the firm out of business. Perkins Coie filed suit on March 11 and on March 12 obtained a temporary restraining order enjoining the government from enforcing most of the Executive Order. The case was then scheduled for a prompt determination on the merits. On April 2, we and the National ACLU filed an amicus brief in support of Perkins Coie’s motion for summary judgment and in opposition to the government’s motion to dismiss the case. We were joined by a cross-ideological group of other amici, including the Cato Institute, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, the Institute for Justice, the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, the National Coalition Against Censorship, the Reporters Committee for the Freedom of the Press, the Rutherford Institute, and the Society for the Rule of Law Institute. Our brief argues that the executive order unconstitutionally retaliates against Perkins Coie for its constitutionally protected advocacy, in violation of the First Amendment; that it violates the constitutional separation of powers and due process; and it violates clients’ rights to representation by the lawyers of their choice; and that it is fundamentally a frontal attack on the rule of law. The president has issued similar executive orders aimed at destroying other law firms with which he has grievances. Jenner & Block and WilmerHale have challenged the orders directed at them, and on April 11 we filed amicus briefs supporting them.
Court Case
Jul 29, 2025

Perkins Coie LLP v. U.S. Dep’t of Justice; Jenner & Block LLP. v. U.S. Dep’t of Justice; WilmerHale LLP v. Executive Office of the President; Susman Godfrey LLP v. Executive Office of the President – Opposing Trump’s Effort to Break the Rule of Law

Court Case
Feb 14, 2025

SUAZO-MULLER v. NOEM (formerly LAS AMERICAS IMMIGRANT ADVOCACY CENTER v. NOEM) – ACCESS TO COUNSEL FOR IMMIGRATION DETAINEES AT GUANTANAMO

Court Case
Oct 28, 2024

K.Y. v. District of Columbia - challenging juvenile justice agency's warehousing of children in jail-like setting for months instead of promptly beginning rehabilitative placements