Plaintiffs Reach Settlement On Delayed Naturalization Procedures
After more than two years of litigation, Sonali Kolhatkar et al v. Jane Arellano et al, SACV07-1394-DOC (RNBx), comes to an end, as the Plaintiffs have reached a settlement agreement with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Filed in August 2007 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, this class action served to be the first of its kind, as it aimed to bring an end to the often prolonged and indeterminate naturalization process of immigrants. Specifically, the Class Complaint alleged that the 2002 institution of FBI name checks to the naturalization process resulted in indefinite delays, with measurable effects on legal permanent residents awaiting adjudication. As a direct result of such delays, Plaintiffs alleged that the federal government was not only effectuating considerable damage to Plaintiff, but that they were also defying laws which mandate the processing of citizenship applications within six months of submission. See 8 U.S.C. §1571 (b).
The terms of the settlement require USCIS to finally adjudicate the hundreds of pending citizenship applications from the greater Los Angeles area. Particularly, USCIS has agreed to ensure the processing of such applications from the Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Bernardino areas within six months. Plaintiffs’ Counsel have essentially secured this process will be timely by mandating access to the relevant data used by the Federal government and auditing their progress. In doing so, the immigration backlog, which has prevented many legal residents from enjoying the benefits of citizenship, will finally meet its end.
