Second Circuit Issues En Banc Decision in Farhane v. United States

On October 31, 2024, the Second Circuit issued an important en banc decision in Farhane v. United States, vacating the decision of the prior panel. The ruling explores the application of the Supreme Court’s 2010 decision in Padilla v. Kentucky to naturalized U.S. citizens. The Second Circuit ruled that the Sixth Amendment entitles a naturalized citizen to be advised by counsel of the possible denaturalization risk that could occur as a result of a criminal plea.

As the court emphasized, “Today we hold that the Sixth Amendment entitles a naturalized U.S. citizen facing the risk of deportation following denaturalization to no less protection than a noncitizen facing the risk of deportation. A risk of denaturalization cannot be
decoupled from a risk of deportation.“

Ramzi Kassem, Naz Ahmad, and Mudassar Toppa of the CLEAR Project at CUNY School of Law, as well as lawyers from the law firm of WilmerHale, were among the counsel for Mr. Farhane.

Tobi Raji of the Washington Post described the decision as “a landmark ruling that experts say expands the constitutional rights of naturalized U.S. citizens and could prove significant as President-elect Donald Trump returns to office.” The full Post article is available here.

IE