Press

June 10, 2026 – In an interview with US Law Week, Benach Pitney Reilly attorney and former immigration judge Emmett Soper discussed the “unprecedented” mass firings of immigration judges by the Trump Administration. At least eight terminated judges have sued the Administration over their dismissals, arguing they were discriminated against based on their gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, political affiliations, and/or rulings favorable to immigrants. Soper explained that if the Trump Administration is given unfettered ability to fire judges for not deporting enough immigrants, it would prevent judges from serving as the “neutral adjudicators” they are supposed to be.

Feb. 4, 2026 – Benach Pitney Reilly attorney and former immigration judge Emmett Soper talked with Bloomberg Law about reports that new Trump Department immigration judges are being trained in only three weeks and instructed to stop granting asylum except in rare cases. Soper explained that, when he was trained to be an immigration judge in 2017, his training was comprehensive, non-ideological, and he was not pushed to arrive at any particular results.

Jan. 15, 2026 – In an interview with WTOP News, Benach Pitney Reilly founding partner Ava Benach advises anyone stopped by ICE to “be respectful, be polite,” while clarifying that “a U.S. citizen has no obligation to produce evidence of his or her citizenship if requested on the street.” 

Benach also explained that, for those that have them, the best form of I.D. to prove citizenship is a U.S. passport.

 Dec. 4, 2025 – Emmett Soper talked to NPR’s Morning Edition about the damaging impact of the Trump Administration’s firing of experienced immigration judges.

Nov. 12, 2025 – BPR attorney and former immigration judge Emmett Soper talked to the PBS New Hour about how the Trump Administration’s mass firings of immigration judges is exacerbating the backlog at immigration courts.

Nov. 6, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly attorney and former immigration judge Emmett Soper spoke to NPR about the real-life consequences of the Trump Administration’s firing of 70 immigration judges, including him. Soper had served at the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review in various capacities since graduating from law school two decades ago.

Oct. 31, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly attorney and former immigration judge Emmett Soper speaks to Law360 Pulse about the care required in adjudicating complex asylum cases, which the Trump Administration is undermining by pressuring judges to deny immigration claims and facilitate mass deportation.

Oct. 29, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly partner Sarah Pitney talks with NBC4 about the devastating real-world impact that government delays can have on immigration claims.

Oct. 29, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly founding partner Ava Benach explains how, after spending 43 years in prison, her client Subramanyam Vedam has finally been cleared of a 1980 murder only to face deportation, despite having lived in the United States since infancy.

Oct. 23, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly attorney and former immigration judge Emmett Soper is quoted in this piece, helping to paint the picture of how the Trump Administration is seeking to turn the immigration courts into a tool of enforcement rather than a place where immigrants receive due process and have their cases fairly considered.

 Oct, 15, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly founding partner Ava Benach discusses her client Subramanyam Vedam’s fight to remain in the United States, the only home he has ever known, after serving 43 years in prison for a murder he did not commit.

Oct. 7, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly partner Erica Reilly talks about her client Douglas Menjivar’s decision to leave the United States after months in ICE custody. He was detained after appearing for a routine appearance in his immigration case and was held despite his lack of a criminal record and his role as the primary caretaker of his wife, who suffers from several serious medical conditions.

Sept. 12, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly founding partner Ava Benach talks to The Post about dangerous conditions facing detainees at the ICE’s field office in Chantilly, Virginia.

Sept. 10, 2025 – Benach Pitney Reilly founding partner Ava Benach describes how ICE is detaining immigrants with pending cases to pressure them into give up their claims.

Aug. 14, 2025 – BPR attorney David Secor explained the intimidation inherent in the DC Metropolitan Police Department’s new policy of cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).