Kyra Lilien, who served at the Concord Immigration Court, filed a federal lawsuit challenging her removal from the bench. Her case comes as the Department of Justice has terminated more than 100 immigration judges since 2025, raising questions about executive authority and judicial independence.
"It was only three lines long, and it said I needed to turn in my laptop and badge immediately and leave," Lilien said, describing the moment she learned she had lost her job.
In an interview last summer with the NPR program "This American Life," Lilien said the notice arrived while she was presiding over a case.
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"I was on the record in the middle of a hearing, and I got the email," she said. Lilien alleges she was discriminated against based on gender, age and her association with immigrant rights groups.
Legal experts say her lawsuit could have broader implications for immigration judges removed under the Trump administration.
"The ones who were fire were predominately people who leaned towards granting asylum," said Bill Hing, a professor of law and migration studies at the University of San Francisco.
Hing said President Trump is asserting broad executive authority over immigration judges, a claim he disputes.
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"I do not believe that the president has the authority to fire immigration judges under article 2. He is claiming as a unified executive he has discretion over every little employee in the executive branch including the department of homeland security but I don't think that's possible because many of these employees are protected," Hing said.
The lawsuits also contend that several other judges in Concord were fired around the same time without explanation.
In a statement, Lilien's attorney said in part, "the President and the Attorney General have taken an expansive view of executive power and are claiming that federal employment statutes passed by Congress do not apply to Immigration Judges."
Jeremiah Johnson, executive vice president of the National Association of Immigration Judges and a former immigration judge who was fired last year in San Francisco, said the terminations have created fear among those still on the bench.
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"Judges are terrified. They are looking over their shoulder. They are working long hours through lunch late into the evening, giving decisions. The amount of cases these judges have to hear is increasing," Johnson said.
The Executive Office for Immigration Review declined "to comment on litigation-related matters."
Johnson said the outcome of Lilien's case - and others like it - could ultimately be decided by the Supreme Court.
"Eventually judge Lilien's case here in the northern district of California and others will ultimately be decided by the supreme court. What is the authority? How much power does the president this executive have to fire federal employees," he said.
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Statement from US DOJ:
"The Executive Office for Immigration Review declines to comment on litigation-related matters."
Statement from Kyra Lilien's attorney:
"As you may be aware, the President and the Attorney General have taken an expansive view of executive power and are claiming that federal employment statutes passed by Congress do not apply to Immigration Judges. This means that when Judge Lilien was fired, and she raised claims that she was fired for impermissible reasons under the EEO statutes, DOJ has taken the position that EEO protections do not apply to her, or to other Immigration Judges. In other words, DOJ is asserting that the Attorney General and the President are permitted to discriminate against Immigration Judges on the basis of their race, sex, national origin, religion, age, color, or disability. Judge Lilien believes it is important for her, as well as our other Immigration Judge clients who are filing similar lawsuits, to push back against this overreach." - Kevin L. Owen.