United States Ninth Circuit

Russian native's petition for review of a decision denying her application for adjustment of status and ordering her removed is granted where: 1) the BIA erroneously interpreted the "as a result of the marriage of the nonimmigrant" language in INA section 245(d); 2) the plain language of section 245 is ambiguous; 3) nothing in the plain language of section 245(d) suggests that an application that was valid when submitted should be automatically invalid when a petitioner's marriage ends by divorce two years later; and 4) the statute also does not require the automatic removal of immigrants whose marriages end in divorce while their applications for adjustment of status are under agency consideration.

Appellate Information

• Argued 04/11/2008
• Decided 08/12/2008
• Published 08/12/2008

Judges

• PREGERSON, Circuit Judge:, Before:  ALFRED T. GOODWIN, HARRY PREGERSON, and D.W. NELSON, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Donald Ungar, San Francisco, CA, for the petitioner.


• For Appellees:
  
• Anthony P. Nicastro, Office of Immigration Litigation, Washington, DC, for the respondent.