1.5 - Court and Headquarters Locations

(a) The Office of the Chief Immigration Judge

    (1) Headquarters - OCIJ, which oversees the administration of the immigration courts nationwide, is located at the EOIR headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia. See Appendix A (Directory). Access to OCIJ headquarters offices is limited to authorized personnel and their guests.

    (2) Immigration Courts and Hearing Locations - OCIJ employs Immigration Judges in immigration courts nationwide. A list of immigration courts is available in Appendix A (Directory) as well as on the EOIR website.

Immigration Judges sometimes hold hearings in alternate locations, such as designated detail cities where the caseload is significant but inadequate to warrant the establishment of a permanent immigration court. Immigration Judges also conduct hearings in DHS detention centers nationwide, as well as many federal, state, and local correctional facilities. Parties should file documents pertaining to hearings held in these locations at the appropriate location. See Part II, Chapter 3 (Filing with the Immigration Court).

In addition, Immigration Judges sometimes conduct hearings by video conference or, under certain conditions, by telephone conference. See Part II, Chapter 4.7 (Hearings by Video or Telephone Conference).

With certain exceptions, hearings before Immigration Judges are open to the public. See Part II, Chapter 4.9 (Public Access). For additional information on the conduct of immigration court hearings, see Part II, Chapter 4.12 (Courtroom Decorum), 4.13 (Electronic Devices).

(b) Board of Immigration Appeals

The offices of the BIA are located at the EOIR headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia. See Appendix A (Directory). With the specific exceptions made for the public information window and the Oral Argument Room, access is limited to authorized personnel and their guests. See Part III, Chapter 8 (Oral Argument).

(c) The Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer

The offices of OCAHO are located at EOIR headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia. See Appendix A (Directory). Access to OCAHO headquarters offices is limited to authorized personnel and their guests. In cases arising under INA § 274B, “due regard shall be given to the convenience of the parties and the witnesses in selecting a place for a hearing.” 28 C.F.R. § 68.5(b). For cases arising under INA § 274A or 274C, the hearing shall be held “at the nearest practicable place to the place where the person or entity resides or to the place where the alleged violation occurred.” Id. OCAHO hearings are open to the public but may be closed by an ALJ “where to do so would be in the best interests of the parties, a witness, the public, or other affected persons.” 28 C.F.R. § 68.39(a).

(d) Confidentiality - EOIR must balance the public’s need for information with the protection of persons who appear before the immigration courts and the BIA. Both the immigration courts and the BIA take special precautions to ensure the confidentiality of cases involving applicants for asylum, for withholding of removal under INA § 241(b)(3), and for relief under the Convention Against Torture; reasonable fear proceedings; battered alien spouses and children; exclusion proceedings; classified information; and information subject to a protective order. See, e.g., 8 C.F.R. § 1003.27(c); see also Part II, Chapter 4.9 (Public Access), Part III, Chapter 8.5 (Public Access).

EOIR takes steps to identify records of proceedings involving battered spouses or children to prevent unauthorized disclosure.^] EOIR keeps all records of proceedings involving battered spouses closed to the public unless the battered spouse authorizes the disclosure, and all records of proceedings involving battered children are always excluded from disclosure. See 8 C.F.R. § 1003.27(c).

^[1] Department of Justice employees who, without authorization, willfully use or disclose information related to proceedings involving a battered spouse or child to anyone (other than a sworn officer or employee of the Department of Justice for legitimate Department purposes) may be subject to disciplinary action and a civil money penalty of up to $5,000. INA § 384(c), 8 U.S.C. § 1367(c).