Overview
- The Executive Office for Immigration Review shut down hearings at 100 Montgomery in San Francisco and is consolidating operations at a newer court in Concord to cut expenses.
- More than 117,000 pending cases from San Francisco are being reassigned mostly to Concord, while a smaller court at 630 Sansome Street with two judges remains open for some proceedings.
- Concord’s court is already strained, with only five judges and a backlog reported at 60,000 cases, and lawyers say many hearings are now being pushed into 2028 and 2029.
- Attorneys warn the move will make it harder for people to find counsel and reach court, increasing the risk of missed notices and in absentia removal orders that can lead to detention and deportation.
- The San Francisco bench collapsed from over 20 judges to two after firings and retirements, and the turmoil triggered mass rescheduling, including 800 removal notices issued in one week in March.