Hausfeld files First Circuit amicus brief challenging unlawful third-country deportation policy

Hausfeld has filed an amicus curiae brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on behalf of leading human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch, the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies, Asian Americans Advancing Justice–Atlanta, Al Otro Lado, and the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights, in support of plaintiffs challenging the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s third-country removal policy. The case concerns the government’s practice of deporting noncitizens to countries not designated in their removal orders, often without notice or an opportunity to raise fear-based claims.

Drawing on extensive documentation and their work with affected individuals, the amici describe how the policy has resulted in serious human rights violations, including arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance, torture, and severe physical and psychological harm. The brief explains that these removals frequently rely on “diplomatic assurances” that fail to provide meaningful protection, despite well-documented risks in receiving countries.

The amici further argue that the policy violates the prohibition on refoulement, including “chain refoulement,” by transferring individuals to third countries that subsequently deport them to places where they face persecution or torture. They emphasize that these outcomes are not isolated incidents but reflect a deliberate policy that disregards due process, U.S. law, and international obligations.

The brief is submitted by a coalition of leading human rights organizations with deep expertise in asylum law and immigrant rights. The Court’s decision will have significant implications for due process in removal proceedings, U.S. compliance with non-refoulement obligations, and the protection of vulnerable individuals facing deportation to unsafe third countries.

Read the brief here.