California law firm denied bid to restart 2027 Green Card Lottery

The federal government said the law firm had no standing and took too long for its challenge to Trump's halting of the diversity visa lottery for 2027.SAN DIEGO (CN) — A federal judge denied a Southern California immigration law firm’s bid to kickstart the diversity visa lottery program for immigrants in the upcoming year, citing timing issues.Red Eagle Law argued Thursday for temporary restraining order to compel the State Department to implement the program before registration for the lottery is scheduled to begin in October. The law firm, which relies in part on serving program applicants, claims the Trump administration has tried to run out the clock for 2027 implementation.“Normally, in the September visa bulletin, the government would announce the visa entry record for next fiscal year,” attorney Curtis Morrison, the firm’s founder and owner, argued. “It appears they’re planning on skipping this allotment altogether and just going to DV-2028 — if at all.”Registration for the program typically begins in October and ends in November. Winners are usually announced in May.The program, also known as the Green Card Lottery, has provided up to 55,000 diversity visas permanent resident status to noncitizen applicants every year for more than 30 years. The lottery was established through the Immigration and Nationality Act.In its July lawsuit against Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the law firm says that the suspension of the program has resulted in a loss of clients. Morrison said that the State Department misled his firm about registration period until it was too late.But U.S. District Judge Jinsook Ohta, a Joe Biden appointee, questioned if it was too late for the law firm to seek relief — or if she had the authority to order relief.“You’re asking me to demand that the government restart this program,” Ohta said. “How would we fix the injury for fiscal year 2027?”Morrison suggested the court order the State Department resume the program for 2027 on an expedited schedule.“You’re basically asking me for a makeup,” Ohta said. “Everything is on the later train, but roughly, the same amount of people would have the same opportunity.”But Department of Justice attorney Ian Pike argued that the law firm didn’t have legal standing because it only had an economic interest that was downstream of the Immigration and Nationality Act.“The plaintiffs’ interests are outside what the statute intended to protect,” he told Ohta. “Red Eagle Law has no federally protected right to bill clients for its services under the INA.”Pike also argued that Red Eagle Law sat on the lawsuit for too long for the court to do anything at this point.“Inventing timetables for the agency to create whole cloth seems outside the court’s jurisdiction to act,” he said. “To write new regulations on an ad hoc basis seems outside the authority of what the court can grant.”“Much of the ship has sailed already,” Ohta agreed.Instead of granting a temporary restraining order, Ohta said she would consider a motion for preliminary injunction before the end of September.“In this timing, regardless of whose fault it is, no matter how fast I act, it would still be a little too late,” she said. “I couldn’t do anything about the suspension of the lottery last year and application winners in May. But at least we can get the numerical allotment satisfied.”That preliminary injunction may be significant for the outcome of the case, considering the time-sensitive nature of the visa lottery registration process, Ohta said.Morrison worried that if there is not a court order before the October registration period, the government may argue the lawsuit is moot.“This is a unique situation,” Morrison told Courthouse News outside of the courtroom. “Never in history has an administration decided not to implement the program for an entire year. We’re being injured by the policy that suspends legal immigration.”Last month, a federal judge in Northern California ordered the government to begin processing the visa lottery applications for 2026. Red Eagle is representing the plaintiffs in that case. But Morrison expressed frustration that the same relief has not been extended to the 2027 applicants.The Trump administration took aim at the program following the shootings at Brown University and in Brookline last year, which authorities determined were carried out by a recipient of a diversity visa. But Morrison said that this is an unfair characterization of the tens of thousands of law-abiding people who receive the visas every year.“If you’re wondering why people seek illegal access, maybe look at what’s happening to the legal path,” he said. “They want to do it the right way. They’re waiting.”Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads