⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

The Second Circuit hears Sasaguay Lima versus Blanche, an immigration case about whether removal proceedings should be put on hold. Sasaguay Lima is facing removal to Ecuador. He sought administrative closure, which takes a case off the immigration court's active calendar without ending it. The immigration judge refused to postpone his hearing. On appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals, he sought a chance to pursue closure after a change in law restored the agency's authority to grant it. His stated basis before the Board was to seek a favorable exercise of prosecutorial discretion—asking the government not to pursue removal. The Board refused closure and treated the judge's earlier refusal to postpone as a denial of closure. His lawyer will argue that this rested on a mistake and requires a new hearing. The government will contend that the Board separately considered closure, so sending the case back would change nothing.

Sasaguay Lima v. Blanche (No. 25-2874) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, argued October 5, 2026.