Maryland Judicial Ethics Committee Opinion 2023-20 Judges’ Signing of Federal U visa Certifications (August 21, 2023) [pdf]

This Maryland Judicial Ethics committee opinion advises about the judicial ethics of U visa certification by state court judges in Maryland. On many points the opinion is useful and provides conclusions consistent with the American Bar Association’s Model Code of Judicial Ethics, The U visa statute, and the Department of Homeland Security’s regulations, policies and publications. However, the opinion also contains assumptions and legally incorrect information about the U visa program that are not consistent with federal immigration law U visa statutes, regulations, policies and DHS publication on the U visa and U visa certification.