United States Ninth Circuit

Petition for review is granted where the BIA's blanket rule against recognizing state courts' nunc pro tunc adoption decrees constitutes an impermissible construction of 8 U.S.C. section 1101(b)(1)(E) under Chevron, U.S.A., Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council , Inc. 47 U.S. 837, 843 (1984) where: 1) the BIA's interpretation is unreasonable because it gives little or no weight to the federal policy of keeping families together, fails to afford deference to valid state court judgments in an area of law -- domestic relations -- that is primarily a matter of state concern and addresses the possibility of immigration fraud through a sweeping blanket rule rather than considering the validity of nunc pro tunc adoption decrees on a case-by-case basis; and 2) the BIA's determination that petitioner engaged in marriage fraud violated her rights to due process of law.

Appellate Information

• Decided 03/22/2013
• Published 03/22/2013

Judges

• Fisher

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel