The Long Journey Home: Ceuellar de Osorio v. Mayorkas and the Importance of Meaningful Judicial Review in Protecting Immigrant Rights

Abstract

In Cuellar de Osorio v. Mayorkas, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit extended the Child Status Protection Act’s (“CSPA”) protections to all children who age out during the extended process of obtaining a visa as a child derivative beneficiary. In so holding, the court overturned a precedential decision by the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”). In its review of the BIA’s decision, the Ninth Circuit applied the two-step test from Chevron, U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., the seminal case in administrative law for review of executive agency action. The court exercised a rigorous review in step one of the test, and held that the CSPA unambiguously grants broad protection to all aged-out children. In exercising its constitutional power to say “what the law is,” the court protected immigrant families by ensuring the executive agency executes the law accurately and fully, as passed by Congress. As the Supreme Court of the United States considers this case, it should uphold the Ninth Circuit to ensure that the unambiguous protection granted by Congress to all children will be properly implemented by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.