Immigration — reconsideration

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United States Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit

Civil

Immigration — reconsideration

Regulation 1003.2(c)(2) does not permit closed immigration proceedings to be reopened.

“Regulation 1003.2(c)(2) is for immigration proceedings what Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b)(6), which authorizes federal district courts to reopen final judgments, is for civil litigation. District courts cannot use Rule 60(b)(6) to apply new decisions retroactively to closed civil cases. See, e.g., Gonzalez v. Crosby, 545 U.S. 524, 536–38 (2005); Ackermann v. United States, 340 U.S. 193 (1950). Immigration proceedings also are civil, and it is hard to see why what is forbidden in other civil litigation should be compulsory in immigration proceedings. Even in criminal prosecutions, full retroactivity is a rare exception to the norm that final judgments survive changes in the law. See, e.g., Whorton v. Bockting, 549 U.S. 406 (2007). Judulang applies to all immigration cases that were pending on the day of its release, but the Board need not reopen closed cases in order to apply its holding.”

Petitions Dismissed.

12-3658 & 13-1295 Shah v. Holder

Petitions for Review of Orders of the Board of Immigration Appeals, Easterbrook, J.