Hafiz Matiullah Khalid, Madrasah Islamiah, Inc. v. DHS

Decision Date25 February 2014
Docket NumberCivil Action No. H–12–3492.
Citation1 F.Supp.3d 560
PartiesHafiz Matiullah KHALID, Madrasah Islamiah, Inc., Plaintiff, v. DHS, USA, and USCIS, Defendants.
CourtU.S. District Court — Southern District of Texas

OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE

Bruce A. Coane, Coane & Associates, Houston, TX, for Plaintiffs.

Adam Laurence Goldman, Department of Justice, Houston, TX, for Defendants.

MEMORANDUM AND OPINION

LEE H. ROSENTHAL, District Judge.

Hafiz Matiullah Khalid challenges the denial of his I–485 application, his I–129 petition, and his I–360 petition. The government contends that this court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction to consider the denial of the I–485 application and that Khalid lacks standing to challenge the denial of his I–129 and I–360 petitions. The government also seeks to dismiss the Attorney General, Eric Holder, from this action as an improperly named defendant. Based on the pleadings; the motion, response, and reply; the oral argument; and the relevant law, the court grants the government's motion. A status conference is set for March 12, 2014 at 5:00 p.m. to address the claims raised by Madrasah Islamiah, Inc. and the information provided in the January 21, 2014 status report.

The reasons for these rulings are explained below.

I. Background

Hafiz Matiullah Khalid is a certified religious scholar and teacher, and an assistant imam. From 1988 to 2003, Khalid worked at Madrasa Usmania in Pakistan. In 2004, Khalid came to the United States on a nonimmigrant religious-worker visa (R–1) to teach at the American Society for Islamic Awareness. In 2005, Khalid began teaching for a religious school operated by the plaintiff, Madrasa Islamiah, a non-profit Islamic school and mosque.

In November 2006, Madrasa Islamiah filed an I–360 visa petition on Khalid's behalf. In August 2007, Khalid contacted the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in the Department of Homeland Security to ask about his petition. A month later, Khalid learned that USCIS delayed processing it pending the results of the required security checks. In April 2008, Khalid again asked about the petition. He learned then that his case had been selected for a detailed background check. In October 2008, Khalid again asked about his petition. In November 2008, Khalid learned that his background check was still pending.

In February 2009, the defendants issued a second Request for Evidence asking Madrasa Islamiah to supplement the administrative record with a description of Khalid's work as a religious teacher. In response, Madrasa Islamiah provided an attestation with information about Khalid's work schedule and duties.

In July 2009, Khalid filed an I–485 application for adjustment of status under the I–360 petition. Khalid also filed Form I–129 to renew his R–1 visa. In January 2010, the USCIS denied Khalid's I–360 petition, I–485 application, and I–129 petition. The I–360 and I–485 were denied because the I–360 did not establish that Khalid was qualified to perform the religious work identified in the petition and Khalid's other duties did not require religious qualifications.

Khalid appealed these decisions to the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO). The AAO acknowledged that the I–485 application and petitions had not been evaluated under the correct standards and that the decisions on the application and petitions were incorrect in some instances. The AAO nonetheless denied the appeal, stating that the submitted documents did not provide sufficient proof of Khalid's salary and the housing he would be provided as part of his compensation. Khalid timely filed this lawsuit challenging these administrative rulings under the Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. § 706, the MandamusAct, 28 U.S.C. § 1361, and the Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2201.

The defendants have moved to dismiss the complaint, arguing that the court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction to consider the denial of the I–485 application and that Khalid lacks standing as a beneficiary to challenge the denial of the I–360 and I–129 petitions under the Administrative Procedure Act. The government also argues that Eric Holder should be dismissed as a defendant. The arguments and responses are analyzed based on the applicable legal standards and the record.

II. Jurisdiction Over the Challenge to the I–485 Application Denial

The plaintiffs' request that this court review the denial of Khalid's I–485 application is governed by the REAL ID Act, Pub.L. No., 109–13, 119 Stat. 231 (2005). The Act amends the jurisdictional provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act[ (INA).] Jean v. Gonzales, 452 F.3d 392, 396 (5th Cir.2006) (quoting Rosales v. Bureau of Immigration & Customs Enforcement, 426 F.3d 733, 735–36 (5th Cir.2005) (per curiam), cert. denied,546 U.S. 1106, 126 S.Ct. 1055, 163 L.Ed.2d 882 (2006)).

Section 1255 of the INA vests the Attorney General with the discretion to adjust an alien's status, provided that:

(1) the alien makes an application for such adjustment;

(2) the alien is eligible to receive an immigrant visa and is admissible to the United States for permanent residence; and

(3) an immigrant visa is immediately available to him at the time his application is filed.

8 U.S.C. § 1255(a). The REAL ID Act strips district courts of jurisdiction to review decisions denying § 1255 applications:

(B) Denials of Discretionary Relief

Notwithstanding any other provision of law (statutory or nonstatutory) ... except as provided in subparagraph (D), and regardless of whether the judgment, decision, or action is made in removal proceedings, no court shall have jurisdiction to review—

(i) any judgment regarding the grant of relief under section ... 1255 of this title, or

(ii) any other decision or action of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority for which is specified under this subchapter to be in the discretion of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security, other than the granting of relief under section 1158(a) of this title.

8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i), (ii) (emphasis added). Subparagraph (D), the exception emphasized above, provides for judicial review of “constitutional claims or questions of law ... filed with an appropriate court of appeals [.] 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(D) (emphasis added).

The Fifth Circuit has provided clear guidance on status-adjustment applications. See Ayanbadejo v. Chertoff, 517 F.3d 273, 274 (5th Cir.2008); Zhao v. Gonzales, 404 F.3d 295, 305 (5th Cir.2005) (per curiam). The Fifth Circuit's decision in Zhao v. Gonzales “provides a clear and consistent roadmap for interpreting § 1252(a)(2)(B).” Ayanbadejo, 517 F.3d at 276 (citing Zhao, 404 F.3d at 295). In Zhao, the Fifth Circuit concluded that the jurisdiction-stripping provision of 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(ii) prevented it from reviewing any decision specified under this subchapter to be in the discretion of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security.' Id. (emphasis original) (quoting 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(ii)). In Ayanbadejo, the Fifth Circuit held that 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i) stripped district courts of jurisdiction over challenges to I–485 application denials. See Ayanbadejo, 517 F.3d at 276. The Fifth Circuit concluded that § 1252(a)(2)(B) placed I–485 application denials ‘ “in the discretion of immigration officials acting under the authority of the Attorney General.” Id. This was because § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i) “explicitly place[d] ‘any judgment regarding the granting of relief under ... section 1255, which provides the statutory authority for I–485 applications, in this category of discretionary decisions that no courts have jurisdiction to review.” Id. As a result, both appellate and district courts “lack jurisdiction over determinations made with respect to an I–485 application for permanent resident status under § 1255.” Id. at 279 (citing Hadwani v. Gonzales, 445 F.3d 798, 800 (5th Cir.2006)).

Under Ayanbadejo, this court lacks the jurisdiction to grant Khalid the relief he seeks on his I–485 application. See, e.g., Khamisani v. Holder, No. H–11–cv–3485, 2013 WL 1089202 (S.D.Tex. Mar. 14, 2013) (“By its own terms, Section 1252(a)(2)(B) deprives courts of jurisdiction to consider appeals of I–485 denials[.]); Aguilera v. Swacina, No. 10–cv–21049 (JLK), 2010 WL 3768055 (S.D.Fla. Sept. 16, 2010) (“None of the bases for relief cited to by Plaintiff in his complaint—the Administrative Procedures Act; the Mandamus Act; or the Declaratory Judgment Act—permit the Court to make an end-run around the lack of jurisdiction over Defendants' denial of Plaintiff's I–485 application.”), aff'd sub. nom. Aguilera v. Dist. Dir., 423 Fed.Appx. 916 (11th Cir.2011) (nonprecedential); Huerta v. Clinton, No. 09–cv–3229, 2010 WL 565279, at *3 (S.D.Tex. Feb. 17, 2010).

Khalid cannot avoid this result. Khalid relies on Mireles–Valdez v. Ashcroft, 349 F.3d 213, 215–17 (5th Cir.2003), for the proposition that the denial of his I–485 application was a nondiscretionary application of the statute. Mireles–Valdez was decided before the REAL ID Act amended the INA. More importantly, in Mireles–Valdez, the Fifth Circuit held only that it had jurisdiction to review a nondiscretionary question of law. Id. In that case, the Immigration Judge denied an application for cancellation of removal as a matter of law and not in the exercise of discretion.” Id. (emphasis original). The Court of Appeals concluded that the cancellation decision turned on a narrow and specific question of law: “whether an alien satisfies the continuous presence requirement is a nondiscretionary determination.” Id. at 217. It was “a nondiscretionary determination because it involve[d] straightforward statutory interpretation and application of law to fact.” Id. This case is different. The decision to deny an I–485 application is discretionary and unreviewable. Ayanbadejo, 517 F.3d at 276. Khalid criticizes Ayanbadejo's analysis, but fails to identify a basis to...

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