Court Orders Government to Allow Diversity Visa Lottery Winners In

On Friday, the U.S. District Court for the District Columbia issued a preliminary injunction to stop the Trump administration from denying visas to 2020 diversity visa lottery winners. The court ordered the administration to process all 2020 diversity visa applications before September 30.   

The court summarized the ruling as follows:

 

“[T]the court rejects Plaintiffs’ statutory and constitutional challenges to the Proclamations, but holds that Plaintiffs are substantially likely to succeed on their claims that (1) the State Department’s policy of not reviewing and adjudicating non-exempt visas is not in accordance with law, is in excess of statutory authority, and is arbitrary and capricious; (2) the State Department’s non-processing of 2020 diversity visa applications constitutes agency action unreasonably delayed; and (3) the State Department’s exclusion of 2020 diversity visa applications from its guidance on mission critical services is arbitrary and capricious. The court further concludes that the DV-2020 Plaintiffs have met the additional requirements for preliminary
injunctive relief pursuant to the court’s equitable authority and 5 U.S.C. § 705 . . . .”

 

The court ruled on diversity visa applications for five consolidated cases, including Gomez v. Trump, which is litigated by a civil rights coalition including the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), Justice Action Center (JAC) and Innovation Law Lab, with pro bono support from Mayer Brown LLP. Diversity visas are granted to those who come from countries with historically low rates of immigration to the United States.

 

A presidential proclamation on immigration was initially issued in April and was later expanded in scope and extended through the end of 2020. The ban halted virtually all immigration, and is indefinitely separating hundreds of thousands of families and throwing the business plans of companies into chaos.

 

With Gomez v. Trump, the civil rights coalition filed the first lawsuit challenging the entirety of the Trump administration’s immigration ban. In addition to diversity visa winners, plaintiffs include family-based visa applicants and businesses who employ temporary foreign workers.

 

Jesse Bless, AILA’s Director of Federal Litigation said, “Thankfully, we saved this year’s diversity visa winners, but at the same time, we know full well that our other plaintiffs and thousands of other families, employers, and individuals will irreparably suffer due to the President’s visa bans. The President has unilaterally rewritten immigration laws in a way that does not reflect our country’s commitment to family unity and the employment of highly-skilled foreign nationals.”

 

Karen Tumlin, Founder and Director of Justice Action Center said, “Diversity visa applicants can finally exhale today. This court decision will result in these immigrants being able to pursue their dreams in the United States, and help boost our economy. The diversity visa lottery has allowed for substantial diversification of legal immigration, especially from Africa, and we’re thankful the court is protecting that. We’re disappointed, though, that the court didn’t block the ban for our other plaintiffs who are suffering. But this isn’t over. We won’t rest until the entirety of the immigration ban is stopped.”

 

“Today’s ruling is an important victory in the fight to protect fundamental principles on which our Nation’s immigration system is based, including promoting diversity, creating fairness, and preventing Executive overreach in areas that Congress has already spoken,” said Nadia Dahab, Senior Litigation Attorney at Innovation Law Lab. “But our fight continues. This President cannot rewrite decades of Congressional judgments with the stroke of a pen, and he cannot continue to separate families to serve his xenophobic political agenda.”

 

The district court ruling is here.

 

More information about the lawsuit, including case filings, can be found here.

 

KJ