Matter of Jaime Armando LAMUS-Pava, 25 I&N Dec. 61 (BIA 2009)

The Board of Immigration Appeals has just ruled that a motion to reopen to apply for adjustment of status based on a marriage entered into after the commencement of removal proceedings may not be denied under the fifth factor enumerated in Matter of Velarde, 23 I&N Dec. 253 (BIA 2002), based on the mere fact that the Government has filed an opposition to the motion, without regard to the merit of that opposition. Matter of Jaime Armando LAMUS-Pava, 25 I&N Dec. 61 (BIA 2009).

What this means is that an Immigration Judge may not deny a motion to reopen that was timely filed on the basis that the alien married a United States citizen after deportation proceedings were instituted solely because the Government opposes the reopening of the case.