New York Immigration Coalition v. Trump
Merit Brief
Once the Supreme Court has granted certiorari and agreed to review a case “on the merits,” each party files merits briefs. The merits briefs argue to the Court why each party should win the case. The Petitioner files the opening brief; the Respondent files a response; and the Petitioner files a Reply Brief.
What's at Stake
The American Civil Liberties Union, New York Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Texas, and Arnold & Porter filed a federal lawsuit July 24, 2020, on behalf of immigrants’ rights groups challenging President Trump’s order seeking to block people who are undocumented from being counted in the U.S. census.
Summary
On July 21, 2020, President Donald Trump issued a Memorandum addressed to Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, declaring plans to exclude undocumented immigrants from the apportionment base for purposes of congressional representation. President Trump asked the Census Department to issue two sets of numbers: the total population of each state, and the total population of each state minus the number of people not in lawful immigration status. Notably, the Memorandum provided no guidance on how to determine citizenship status, given that previous attempts to ask Census respondents about their citizenship had been defeated in Department of Commerce v. New York.
On July 24, 2020, the ACLU, the New York Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Texas, and Arnold & Porter filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the policy. Brought on behalf of the New York Immigration Coalition, Make the Road New York, CASA, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, ADC Research Institute, and FIEL Houston, the suit alleged the Memorandum violated the statutes governing the census and apportionment, as well as the Constitution. Shortly afterwards, the case was consolidated with another similar lawsuit brought by a coalition of governmental entities, including twenty-two states and the District of Columbia. The parties in the consolidated case then moved for summary judgment, or in the alternative, a preliminary injunction declaring the Memorandum unlawful.
On September 10, 2020, a three-judge panel of the District Court declared that the Memorandum was unlawful, and ordered the Secretary of Commerce not to include any information on the number of undocumented immigrants in each state. The government promptly appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court (an option available in a narrow class of cases, including those concerning the census), and sought a stay of the lower court’s order, which was denied.
At the Supreme Court, the parties first submitted briefs as to whether the case should be resolved on an expedited basis, in light of statutory deadlines concerning the transmission of information from the Secretary of Commerce to the President. On October 16, 2020, the Court issued an order setting the case for a full hearing on the merits on an expedited basis, with oral arguments to occur in late November.
On November 30, 2020, former Voting Rights Project Director Dale Ho argued the case for the Plaintiffs before the U.S. Supreme Court.
On December 18, 2020, the Supreme Court issued its opinion, finding the case not ripe for review, reasoning that future events – including the extent to which undocumented people could and would be excluded from the apportionment count, and whether this exclusion would in fact shift congressional representation – were too speculative to allow for court adjudication. Therefore, the Supreme Court vacated the lower court’s order. On January 21, 2021, the day he took office, President Biden issued an executive order rescinding the challenged Memorandum.
Legal Documents
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12/18/2020
Opinion -
11/23/2020
Reply Brief for Appellants -
11/16/2020
Brief for State Government Appellees -
11/16/2020
Brief for NYIC Appellees -
10/30/2020
Brief for Appellants Trump Administration et al.
Date Filed: 12/18/2020
Court: U.S. Supreme Court
Download DocumentDate Filed: 11/23/2020
Court: U.S. Supreme Court
Download DocumentDate Filed: 11/16/2020
Court: U.S. Supreme Court
Download DocumentDate Filed: 11/16/2020
Court: U.S. Supreme Court
Download DocumentDate Filed: 10/30/2020
Court: U.S. Supreme Court
Download Document-
09/23/2020
Plaintiffs' Opposition to Motion to Stay Judgment Pending Appeal -
09/16/2020
Defendants' Motion to Stay Judgment Pending Appeal -
09/10/2020
Order Granting Summary Judgment -
08/28/2020
Defendants' Reply in Support of Motion to Dismiss -
08/25/2020
Plaintiffs' Opposition to Defendants' Motion to Dismiss -
08/19/2020
Defendants' Motion to Dismiss All Claims -
08/19/2020
Defendants' Opposition to Plaintiffs' Summary Judgment Motion -
08/14/2020
Amicus Brief of House of Representatives Supporting Plaintiffs -
08/14/2020
Amicus Brief of Congresspersons Supporting Plaintiffs -
08/07/2020
Plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment -
08/06/2020
First Amended Complaint -
07/24/2020
Complaint
Date Filed: 09/23/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 09/16/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 09/10/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/28/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/25/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/19/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/19/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/14/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/14/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/07/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 08/06/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentDate Filed: 07/24/2020
Court: Southern District of New York
Download DocumentPress Releases
ACLU Comment on Biden Revocation of Trump Anti-Immigrant Census Policy
ACLU Comment on Trump Administration Reportedly Ending Efforts to Exclude Undocumented Immigrants From Census Count
ACLU Comment on Supreme Court Census Ruling
ACLU Comment on Supreme Court Action in Challenge to Trump Census Order
ACLU Comment on Federal Court Ruling Blocking Trump Anti-Immigrant Census Order