Supreme Court leaves immigration rule blocked during appeal

The Supreme Court on October 27 denied Baltimore, Columbus, New Haven and Centro Legal de la Raza’s emergency request to pause a judgment blocking a 2024 immigration regulation, leaving that judgment in force while their appeal continues. The court issued a brief, unsigned order without explanation. No justices publicly dissented. The decision addressed only the request for temporary relief; it did not resolve the regulation’s ultimate legality or whether immigration judges have statutory authority to use administrative closure. The regulation, adopted by the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review in 2024, allowed immigration judges to temporarily remove some deportation cases from active dockets while people pursued other legal relief. That could include asylum or protections available to crime victims. The practice did not itself dismiss a case or decide whether a person should be deported. Texas sued the Justice Department over the regulation on June 22, 2026. That day, Texas and the department jointly asked a federal judge to rule against the rule, and the judge approved their agreement, blocking it nationwide. The agreement also bars the department’s...