The Immigration Battle in American Courts

This book assesses the role of the federal judiciary in immigration and the institutional evolution of the Supreme Court and the US Courts of Appeals. Neither court has played a static role across time. By the turn of the century, a division of labor had developed between the two courts whereby the Courts of Appeals retained their original function as error-correction courts, while the Supreme Court was reserved for the most important policy and political questions. Law explores the consequences of this division for immigrant litigants, who are more likely to prevail in the Courts of Appeals because of advantageous institutional incentives that increase the likelihood of a favorable outcome. As this book proves, it is inaccurate to speak of an undifferentiated institution called 'the federal courts' or 'the courts', for such characterizations elide important differences in mission and function of the two highest courts in the federal judicial hierarchy.

1. Introduction; 2. How do we know what we know?; 3. The rise of two courts with differentiated functions; 4. Interstial policy making in the US Courts of Appeals; 5. Institutional growth and innovation; 6. Continuity amidst change; 7. Conclusion; Appendices.

Anna O. Law is an Assistant Professor at DePaul University. She previously served as a Program Analyst at the United States Commission on Immigration Reform - a bipartisan, congressional blue ribbon panel charged with making policy recommendations to Congress and the White House. She was also an expert commentator in an award-winning documentary about the Supreme Court that aired on PBS channels nationwide in 2007. Her articles have appeared in the Journal of American Ethnic History and the Georgetown Immigration Law Journal.