Courts status is on a daily basis. The best thing to do is to check daily for status of the courts.
Immigration: Los Angeles and Van Nuys: All non-detained hearings are rescheduled. Courts are currently closed and there has been a date of April 10, 2020 as a target date for reopening.
There are other courts throughout the nation that are operational. You can check the USDOJ website for specific locations: https://www.justice.gov/eoir/eoir-operational-status-during-coronavirus-pandemic
Detained Immigration: Detained hearings are going forward (Adelanto Detention Center, the local immigration detention center for the Los Angeles area). However, at this moment, there are no public visitations, and as of March 24, 2020, attorneys and interpreters are only allowed to enter with personal protective gear. Many hearings with attorneys are occurring via telephone.
State Courts : Los Angeles County Courts are operating on a limited basis. For criminal, arraignments are still being conducted and hearings for detained individuals. For probate, civil and family, hearings are being conducted for urgent and emergency matters. The clerks offices are closed, however, there is a drop box for filings at the entry of court.
What you should be doing:
If you have court during this time or within the next few weeks, reach out to your attorney and make sure that all documents needed for your next hearing are ready when the courts reopen.
Prepare all your supporting documents for your upcoming hearings. Email if possible your declarations and supporting documents to make sure they are ready for filing. The immigration courts have already given guidelines that any items due during the closure of courts are due the day it reopens. So, you must work with your attorney to make sure the items are filed timely with courts when they reopen.
Keep an eye out for critical dates:
Asylum one year requirement. Try to file within the one year. While there is an exception for extraordinary circumstances, which this might qualify as, you don’t want to depend on that determination.
Check for future court dates. You can call the immigration # for future court dates: (800) 898-7180. Also, there is a online portal recently available: https://portal.eoir.justice.gov/InfoSystem/Form?Language=EN
The immigration courts are looking to reopen as soon as they can. Hopefully, it will be at a time that it is safe for all. However, you need to be prepared to go forward with your case and therefore need to keep in contact and get all the documents needed to your attorney even though it might be a more difficult time to meet with your attorney.
States Courts have online information at: https://www.lacourt.org/ or specifically at: http://www.lacourt.org/onlineservices/ON0001.aspx
Our office is operational during this time. You can contact us via telephone: (213) 687-4412 or email us at [email protected]. In addition, you can text us any questions you have. We do ask that if you need to come to the office to provide documents, contact us first and see if mailing in is an option.
