2019 E44 Supporting Statement

SUPPORTING STATEMENT
OMB No. 1125-0007
Immigration Practitioner Complaint Form
Form EOIR-44
______________________________________________________________________________
Part A. Justification
1. Necessity of Information Collection – Individuals in immigration proceedings may be
represented by counsel. See 8 USC § 1362. Any individual may file a complaint against
an immigration practitioner authorized to practice before the Board of Immigration
Appeals (Board) and the immigration courts of the Executive Office for Immigration
Review (EOIR), or the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS). See 8 CFR § 1003.102. Complaints may be made regarding
an immigration practitioner’s criminal, unethical or unprofessional conduct, or frivolous
behavior. Complaints are directed to the agency where the alleged misconduct occurred.
An individual filing a complaint regarding a practitioner’s behavior in proceedings before
EOIR must file the complaint in writing with EOIR’s Office of the General Counsel’s
Attorney Discipline Unit (ADU), and use Form EOIR-44. The completed form must
state in detail certain information supporting the complaint, including the name and
address of both the complainant and the practitioner, the date and nature of the alleged
conduct or behavior at issue, the individuals involved, the harm to or damages incurred
by the complainant, and any other relevant information. See 8 CFR § 1003.104(a)(2).

Following receipt of a completed complaint or on its own initiative, the ADU will
conduct a preliminary review to determine whether to launch a preliminary disciplinary
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inquiry, request additional information from the complainant, refer the matter to a state
bar disciplinary authority or other law enforcement agency, or take no further action. See
8 CFR § 1003.104(b).

EOIR has not made any changes to the currently approved Form EOIR-44.

2. Needs and Uses - The form is filed and considered in the context of a disciplinary
complaint against an immigration practitioner pursuant to 8 CFR § 1003.104.
Accordingly, the ADU considers the information contained in the form to the extent
necessary to process the disciplinary complaint and determine appropriate future action.
Use of the Form EOIR-44 ensures complete collection of necessary information, allowing
EOIR to more effectively evaluate the merits of new disciplinary complaints and to
timely process them. Moreover, the form provides a helpful, clear, and concise summary
of the regulations that govern the practitioner disciplinary program.

3. Use of Technology - The use of this form provides the most efficient means for
collecting and processing the required data. The Form EOIR-44 is available on EOIR’s
website for printing in both the English and Spanish language. An applicant may type the
requested information into the online form and then print it for submission to EOIR. In
addition, an applicant may print the blank form in its entirety and complete it by typing or
printing legibly. Currently, EOIR only has limited automated capabilities in place to
accept the electronic submission of certain forms. However, EOIR is exploring a number

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of electronic document initiatives, including electronic submission of additional EOIR
forms.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication - The only form for filing a complaint against an
immigration practitioner authorized to practice before the Board or the immigration
courts is the Form EOIR-44. A review of EOIR’s existing forms revealed no duplication
of effort, and there is no similar information currently being collected which can be used
for this purpose.

5. Impact on Small Businesses - This collection does not have an impact on small
businesses or other small entities.

6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection - Failure to collect this information would
inhibit an individual’s ability to file a complaint regarding an immigration practitioner’s
criminal, unethical, or unprofessional conduct, or frivolous behavior. It would also
substantially hinder EOIR’s ability to effectively administer the policy objectives of this
federal attorney discipline program.

7. Special Circumstances Influencing Collection - None of the eight special
circumstances identified in OMB instruction number 7 apply to this collection.

8. Federal Register Publication and Consultation - A 60-day notice covering this
collection was published in the Federal Register at 84 FR 46759 (Sept. 5, 2019). A 303

day notice covering this collection published in the Federal Register at 84 FR 62554
(Nov. 15, 2019). Copies of these notices are attached. If comments are received, they
will be considered and incorporated where appropriate.

9. Payment or Gift to Claimants - EOIR does not provide any payment or gifts to
individuals in exchange for the information provided in Form EOIR-44.

10. Assurance of Confidentiality – EOIR’s Office of the General Counsel maintains the
original complaint. EOIR staff members who process the complaint may access the Form
EOIR-44. To the extent permitted by law, EOIR protects the confidentiality of the
contents of the Form EOIR-44 and its attachments. EOIR would release information in
accordance with the Privacy Act and the Freedom of Information Act.

Notably, under 8 CFR § 1003.108(a), except as otherwise provided by law or regulation,
information concerning disciplinary complaints or preliminary inquiries is confidential.
Under the regulation, exceptions to the confidentiality rule include, but are not limited to,
disclosures that are necessary to conduct a preliminary inquiry (e.g., disclosures to the
practitioner in the course of a disciplinary investigation), to protect the public (e.g., where
the practitioner has caused, or is likely to cause, harm to the public, clients, or the
administration of justice), and to refer factual allegations and supporting documentation
to third parties (e.g., law enforcement and state attorney discipline authorities). See 8
CFR § 1003.108. To the extent that EOIR requests that otherwise confidential
information may be disclosed to third parties as permitted by law or regulation, the Form
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EOIR-44 explains the confidentiality limitations and, by their signature on the Form
EOIR-44, complainants expressly waive confidentiality during the preliminary inquiry
phase of a disciplinary proceeding.

11. Justification for Sensitive Questions - As explained above, to the extent that the Form
EOIR-44 requests information of a sensitive nature, including information normally held
inviolate under the attorney-client privilege and other applicable law, the Form EOIR-44
provides a signature clause allowing complainants to expressly waive any such
confidentiality limitations. Questions of a sensitive nature, including, for example, those
that elicit information relating to an immigration practitioner’s handling of a respondent’s
asylum case, are necessary to evaluate the merits of the disciplinary complaint (e.g.,
whether the practitioner misled the complainant or charged a grossly excessive fee, both
of which are grounds for seeking imposition of disciplinary sanctions).

12. Estimate of Hour Burden
a. Number of Respondents

200

b. Number of Responses per Respondent

1

c. Total Annual responses

200

d. Hours per response

2 hours

e. Total annual hourly reporting burden

400

The total annual reporting burden is derived by multiplying the number of respondents
(200) by the frequency of response (1) by the number of hours per response (2 hours):

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200 respondents x 1 response per respondent x 2 hours per respondent = 400 burden
hours.

13. Estimate of Cost Burden
There are no capital or start-up costs associated with this information collection. The
estimated public cost is zero.

For informational purposes only, there may be additional costs to respondents.
Respondents may incur a cost if they hire a private practitioner to assist them with
completing the Form EOIR-44. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the median
hourly wage for lawyers is $58.13. For those respondents who proceed without a
practitioner, there is an estimated cost of $10 per hour for completing the form (the
individual’s time and supplies) in lieu of the practitioner cost. There are also no fees
associated with filing the Form EOIR-44.

14. Estimated Cost to Federal Government - It is estimated that the annual government
cost for printing, distributing, stocking, processing and maintaining the Form EOIR-44 is
$2,433.

15. Reason for Change in Burden - EOIR did not see a change in submissions during the
past three years. Accordingly, the hour burden did not change.

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16. Plans for Publication - EOIR does not intend to employ the use of statistics or the
publication thereof for this collection of information.

17. Exceptions to Certification Statement - The EOIR does not request an exception to
the certification of this information collection.

Section B. Collection of Information Employing Statistical Methods
This collection does not employ statistical methods.

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PAPERWORK CERTIFICATION

In submitting this request for OMB approval, I certify that the requirements of the
Privacy Act and OMB directives have been complied with, including paperwork regulations, any
applicable statistical standards or directives, and any other information policy directives
promulgated under 5 CFR § 1320.

CHRISTINA
BAPTISTA

Digitally signed by
CHRISTINA BAPTISTA
Date: 2019.11.22 13:25:07
-05'00'

_____________________
Christina Baptista
Senior Counsel for Immigration
Executive Office for Immigration Review

__________________
Date

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