Supreme Court Sides with US in Immigration Dispute Over Review

The US Supreme Court ruled against immigrants seeking to challenge administrative decisions in federal court, in a case that could make the difference between someone staying in the US or being deported.

In a 5-4 ruling on Monday authored by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the justices said a law baring courts from considering relief left up to the discretion of immigration officials applies to factual disputes as to whether someone is eligible for that discretionary relief.

Justice Neil Gorsuch parted ways with his Republican-appointed colleagues to join his more liberal justices in dissent.

During arguments in December, a number of justices suggested that the strong presumption for judicial review should favor the petitioner, Pankajkumar Patel, who has lived in the US for nearly 30 years.

He was barred from seeking a green card by immigration officials because he’d falsely stated that he was a US citizen when applying for a driver’s license. The high court ruling means Patel can’t challenge that determination in court.

The case is Patel v. Garland, U.S., No. 20-979.