Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and nonprofit law firm America First Legal have secured a federal order permanently ending a Biden-era immigration policy known as the Administrative Closure Rule.
This week, America First Legal (AFL) and Paxton announced they had successfully challenged the Biden administration rule, which allowed immigration judges to indefinitely pause immigration deportation proceedings.
The regulation, enacted by the Department of Justice in May 2024, authorized the use of the “administrative closure,” a procedural mechanism that removes a case from an immigration judge’s active docket.
Under the rule, immigration judges could administratively close cases for virtually any reason. According to AFL, judges could grant closure if both parties agreed or if one party requested it.
The Department of Justice reported that the number of administratively closed cases increased from nearly 278,000 in January 2021 to almost 392,000 in January 2025. During the same time period, the Executive Office for Immigration Review’s backlog grew from 1.68 million cases to more than 4.1 million.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas’ Wichita Falls Division, argued that the rule undermined immigration law and violated the Administrative Procedures Act.
On the same day the lawsuit was filed, the district court agreed, ruling that the regulation exceeded statutory authority and stating that “no statute authorizes immigration judges to immigration judges to indefinitely administratively close or suspend adjudication of a case before them.”
“The end of this Biden-era rule is a major win for common sense, safety, and national security,” said Gene Hamilton, President of America First Legal. “Since day one, America First Legal has been fighting for common-sense immigration enforcement that allows our country to thrive. We are grateful to Attorney General Ken Paxton and his team, and are proud to have played a role in creating real, tangible benefits for the American people.”
