Author: Amy Waller, Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Website
Last updated: December 2004

Background Information

Many immigration related matters require hearings in the Immigration Court. In Chicago, there is a panel of eight Immigration Judges. Immigration Judges are employed by the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), a branch of the Department of Justice. They can hear and decide upon matters pertaining to the removal of aliens. Immigration Judges also preside over asylum proceedings. Immigration Judges do not handle administrative appeals, which are heard by the Board of Immigration Appeals.

Who May Appear Before the Immigration Court

All aliens may be represented in immigration court by the attorney or representative of their choice (at no cost to the government). Law students enrolled at an accredited law school may represent aliens before the court. In certain circumstances, aliens may also be represented by reputable individuals, persons accredited to appear before the Board of Immigration Appeals, accredited officials of the U.S. government, persons formerly authorized to practice, and amicus curiae. There are criteria each non-attorney representative must meet.

Notice of Appearance

When an attorney first appears before an Immigration Judge on behalf of a client, he or she must file a Notice of Appearance (Form EOIR-28) with the court. This notice indicates that the attorney is authorized and qualified to represent his or her client before the Immigration Court. All forms submitted to the court must have original, not photocopied, signatures, although in practice, the court accepts facsimile signatures for detained clients on the EOIR-28, since it can be extremely difficult to obtain a detained client’s original signature. 

In addition, in order to have discussions with a client’s deportation officer, it is good practice to file a G-28 appearance form with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which is the division of DHS that prosecutes removal cases. The easiest way to file a G-28 is by tendering a copy at the immigration hearing to the ICE attorney, or "Assistant Chief Counsel," who is commonly referred to in Immigration Court as the "trial attorney." The appearance form for appearing before the Department of Homeland Security is available on the website for United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, a separate division of DHS from ICE. Although the website says that the form is used for appearing before USCIS, it also may be used to represent a client in discussions with ICE. 

Service of Process

The attorney must also serve the Notice of Appearance upon the Office of the Chief Counsel. Service upon the Office of the Chief Counsel may be made in person or by mail.

The Notice of Appearance filed with the Immigration Judge must also include a Certificate of Service certifying that the form was served on the Office of the Chief Counsel and stating the date on which it was served. Service upon the Office of the Chief Counsel may also be made in person at the proceeding, by noting on the record during the hearing before the Immigration Judge that service was made.

Special Rules for Filing the Notice of Appearance with the Chicago Court

All documents submitted to the Immigration Court in Chicago must conform to the local operating procedures for the Chicago Immigration Court.

The court will accept a filing by mail or personal service. All documents filed with the Chicago Immigration Court must be two-hole punched at the top, and filings of more than five pages should be paginated. Filings with exhibits should contain a table of contents that appears on the first page, and if the exhibits have multiple pages, they should be tabbed.

Mailing Addresses

The Mailing Address for the Chicago Immigration Court is:
Immigration Court
Executive Office for Immigration Review
55 E. Monroe, Suite 1900
Chicago, IL 60603

The Mailing Address for the Office of the Chief Counsel is:
Office of the Chief Counsel
Department of Homeland Security
55 E. Monroe, Suite 1700
Chicago, IL 60603