Practice Advisory: The Laken Riley Act's Mandatory Detention Provisions

On January 29, 2025, President Trump signed the Laken Riley Act (LRA) into law. The law expands no-bond detention for certain noncitizens in immigration proceedings, and it also purports to give states the ability to sue the federal government over immigration decisions they dislike, opening the door to politically motivated and discriminatory actions. The goal of this practice advisory is to support practitioners in defending noncitizens impacted by the LRA's detention provisions. It summarizes the law’s detention provisions, discusses groups of noncitizens whose detention should not be impacted by the LRA, provides potential arguments for a narrow interpretation of the provisions’ scope, describes procedural options for contesting a client’s mandatory detention under the LRA, and identifies considerations for criminal defense attorneys.