Law360 Access to Justice

Experts say accredited representatives — nonlawyers authorized by the federal government to represent immigrants — could greatly expand legal representation. But their future is uncertain under the Trump administration. https://lnkd.in/dtSgjNWE

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security urged a judge to reject asylum-seekers' attempt to renegotiate an agreement to release them from detention on a case-by-case basis, saying they've offered no evidence that parole is being categorically denied. https://lnkd.in/edGPFUR7

A Connecticut exoneree urged a federal jury to award more than $50 million — or $5,000 per day — for the three decades he spent behind bars for a 1985 murder, arguing two town cops ignored cracks in the case almost from the beginning. https://lnkd.in/dqcHe6BD

A rare public statement from Chief Justice John Roberts condemned calls for judicial impeachments after President Donald Trump called for the judge in the Venezuelan deportation case to be impeached as his administration escalates attacks on the judiciary. https://lnkd.in/ea9fwhnR

A group of former immigration judges and Board of Immigration Appeals members told a judge that legal services programs for unrepresented detained immigrants that the Trump administration stopped funding help the courts function more efficiently. https://lnkd.in/g2pzjG8m

A D.C. federal judge blocked the Trump administration from deporting some Venezuelans under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, a wartime law President Donald Trump invoked to immediately remove noncitizens deemed to be enemies of the state. https://lnkd.in/dmtZPtjE

The New Jersey State Police have agreed to process judicial expungement orders within 120 days, resolving litigation over yearslong delays in the clearing of expunged criminal records, the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender announced. https://lnkd.in/eBedkwhM

The New York City Bar Association's pro bono arm has rebranded and expanded its homeless assistance program into the Shelter Advocacy Project. Its leader talked to Law360 about how the program aims to tackle urgent issues for people who are homeless. https://lnkd.in/gX8ERKZe

As the Trump administration abandons consent decrees — court-ordered agreements designed to curb police misconduct — experts warn that a crucial mechanism for law enforcement accountability is disappearing. https://lnkd.in/eHFqtv8J

Former President Joe Biden set records when he granted approximately 2,500 people clemency at the end of his term, but the process of getting out of prison for those people has not been so straightforward and two months later, a majority remain in custody. https://lnkd.in/dBmNPewK