In recent years, growing dysfunction in the United States' immigration system has put pressure upon the federal courts to play a central role in lawmaking at the nation's border. Disputes about asylum and refugee policy, the proposed border wall, cross-border shootings, and the application of the Suspension Clause to undocumented immigrants have underscored the difficult role of federal courts at the border. This panel will consider federal court doctrines that bear upon the availability of judicial review at the border, asking whether and to what extent those doctrines create zones free from judicial oversight. It will also ask in what ways recent challenges to immigration law and policy have shaped the doctrines of federal courts law. Finally, the panel will look to see what light disputes at the border may shed upon the design of and practical constraints upon the federal courts system.
Business meeting held on Saturday, January 4, 2020 at 7:00 am.