Sec. 3. Professional treatment of immigration judges
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Section 101(b)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1101(b)(4) ) is amended to read as follows: The term immigration judge means an attorney who— has been appointed by the Attorney General to serve as a United States immigration judge; and is qualified to conduct proceedings under this Act, including removal proceedings under section 240. An immigration judge shall be subject to such supervision and shall perform such duties as the Attorney General shall prescribe as long as such supervision does not interfere with the immigration judge’s exercise of independent decision-making authority over cases in which he or she presides.
An immigration judge shall be an attorney at the time of his or her appointment by the Attorney General and shall maintain good standing or appropriate judicial status (as defined solely by the licensing jurisdiction) with the bar of the highest court of any State. The service of an immigration judge is deemed to be judicial in nature. Actions taken by an immigration judge while serving in a judicial capacity shall be reviewed under the applicable Code of Judicial Conduct. Immigration judges shall not be subject to any code of attorney behavior for conduct or actions taken while performing duties as an immigration judge.
An immigration judge may not be disciplined for any good faith legal decisions made in the course of hearing and deciding cases. Criticism of an immigration judge, in a decision of any appellate court may not be considered or construed as a finding of misconduct. . Any system of completion goals or other efficiency standards imposed on immigration judges (as defined in section 101(b)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act)— may be used solely as management tools for obtaining or allocating resources; and may not be used— to limit the independent authority of immigration judges to fulfill their duties; or as a reflection of individual judicial performance.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall establish a transparent judicial complaint process that is consistent with— the Guidelines for the Evaluation of Judicial Performance developed by the American Bar Association; and the judicial performance evaluation principles developed by the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System. Every immigration judge shall be presumed to have 15 years of Federal civilian service for the purpose of the accrual of annual leave.
In addition to the training required under section 603(c) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 ( 22 U.S.C. 6473(c) ), the Attorney General shall provide immigration judges with— meaningful, ongoing training, including annual, in-person training, to maintain current knowledge of immigration cases, changes in the law and effective docketing practices; and time away from the bench to assimilate the knowledge gained through such training. Because of the ethical duty owed by immigration judges to participate in continuing legal education, including teaching of law at institutions of higher learning and other activities to educate the public and to improve the legal profession, the Attorney General may not prevent or interfere with the participation of an immigration judge in any such bona fide activities if— undertaken in conjunction with an established university, law school, bar association, or legal organization; and the immigration judge clearly indicates that such participation is in his or her personal capacity and does not reflect any official positions or policies.
Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall promulgate interim regulations governing the exercise of the authority given to immigration judges under section 240(b)(1) of the Immigration and Nationality Act ( 8 U.S.C. 1229a(b)(1) ) to sanction contempt of an immigration judge’s exercise of authority under such Act. Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall promulgate final regulations governing the authority described in subparagraph (A).
If the Attorney General fails to comply with subparagraph (1)(B), immigration judges shall— make appropriate findings of contempt; and submit such findings to the United States District Court for the judicial district in which the immigration judge is physically located.
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