§ 103.10 - Precedent decisions.

§ 103.10 Precedent decisions.

(a) Proceedings before the immigration judges, the Board of Immigration Appeals and the Attorney General are governed by part 1003 of 8 CFR chapter V.

(b) Decisions as precedents. Except as Board decisions may be modified or overruled by the Board or the Attorney General, decisions of the Board, and decisions of the Attorney General, shall be binding on all officers and employees of the Department of Homeland Security or immigration judges in the administration of the immigration laws of the United States. By majority vote of the permanent Board members, selected decisions of the Board rendered by a three-member panel or by the Board en banc may be designated to serve as precedents in all proceedings involving the same issue or issues. Selected decisions designated by the Board, decisions of the Attorney General, and decisions of the Secretary of Homeland Security to the extent authorized in paragraph (i) of this section, shall serve as precedents in all proceedings involving the same issue or issues.

(c) Referral of cases to the Attorney General.

(1) The Board shall refer to the Attorney General for review of its decision all cases which:

(i) The Attorney General directs the Board to refer to him.

(ii) The Chairman or a majority of the Board believes should be referred to the Attorney General for review.

(iii) The Secretary of Homeland Security, or specific officials of the Department of Homeland Security designated by the Secretary with the concurrence of the Attorney General, refers to the Attorney General for review.

(2) In any case the Attorney General decides, the Attorney General's decision shall be stated in writing and shall be transmitted to the Board or Secretary, as appropriate, for transmittal and service as provided in paragraph (c) of this section or 8 CFR 1003.1(h)(2).

(d) Publication of Secretary's precedent decisions. The Secretary of Homeland Security, or specific officials of the Department of Homeland Security designated by the Secretary with the concurrence of the Attorney General, may file with the Attorney General Service precedent decisions as set forth in § 103.3(c).

(e) Precedent decisions. Bound volumes of designated precedent decisions, entitled “Administrative Decisions under Immigration and Nationality Laws of the United States,” may be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office. Prior to publication in volume form, current precedent decisions are available from the Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review's Virtual Law Library at: http://www.justice.gov/eoir/vll/libindex.html.

(f) [Reserved]

[68 FR 9832, Feb. 28, 2003. Redesignated and amended at 76 FR 53781, Aug. 29, 2011]