A coalition of unions, advocacy groups and six individual green card applicants filed suit on October 5, 2026 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, asking a judge to block and set aside two USCIS policies that have reshaped how adjustment-of-status (Form I-485) applications are decided. The case, American Association of University Professors v. Mullin (No. 1:26-cv-14527), names DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, DHS, USCIS and USCIS Director Joseph Edlow as defendants. AILA announced the filing the same day.
The two policies under challenge
The first is PM-602-0199, the May 21, 2026 policy memorandum that describes adjustment of status as “extraordinary relief” and directs officers to treat an applicant’s choice to adjust inside the U.S., rather than leave and go through consular processing, as a negative discretionary factor. According to the complaint, the memo requires “unusual or even outstanding” equities to overcome that factor. The second is PA-2026-05, the August 5, 2026 “Evidence, Requests for Evidence, and Notices of Intent to Deny” policy alert. It replaced the June 2021 guidance that generally required an RFE or NOID before denial, and it lets officers deny a deficient filing outright. It applies to cases already pending on August 5.
The plaintiffs argue the combination is especially harsh for anyone who filed an I-485 before May 21: those applicants built their files under the old rules, had no reason to submit evidence aimed at a new adverse factor, and can now be denied without a chance to cure. The complaint raises six counts: exceeding statutory authority under 8 U.S.C. § 1255, unlawful retroactivity, arbitrary-and-capricious action, failure to use notice-and-comment rulemaking, violation of USCIS’s own Policy Manual and BIA precedent (the Accardi doctrine), and Fifth Amendment due process. It asks for a temporary restraining order, preliminary injunction and/or a § 705 stay while the case proceeds, then vacatur of both policies.
Who is suing
Plaintiffs include the AAUP and its Harvard and Boston University chapters, SEIU, SEIU Local 509, 32BJ SEIU, Americans for Immigrant Justice, and six applicants. One is a Houston-based Nigerian national on F-1 status working as a senior analyst through CPT, whose employment-based immigrant petition has been pending since November 2024 and whose I-485 was filed April 2, 2026. Counsel are Democracy Forward, the American Immigration Council, AILA and Colombo & Hurd. The complaint also cites the BIA’s August 2026 Matter of Delcarma-Lara decision overruling Arrabally as part of a broader pattern that makes leaving the U.S. riskier for adjustment applicants.
What it means for applicants right now
Nothing changes yet. As of October 6 the docket shows the complaint, summons and pro hac vice admissions. The case has been assigned to Magistrate Judge Donald L. Cabell, and no emergency motion has been filed so far. Both policies remain in force. Employment-based applicants with pending I-485s, including EB-2 NIW and EB-1 beneficiaries, should keep assuming that a denial can come without an RFE. That means filing complete, well-documented applications and, where relevant, affirmatively addressing why discretion should be exercised in their favor. Watch for a preliminary-injunction motion: Massachusetts courts have moved quickly on similar challenges this year, including the September order postponing the duration-of-status rule.
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Source: AILA recent postings / CourtListener (D. Mass. 1:26-cv-14527)