{"ID":63698,"name":"Monsalvo Velazquez v. Garland","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/cases\/2024\/23-929","view_count":0,"docket_number":"23-929","additional_docket_numbers":null,"manner_of_jurisdiction":"Writ of \u003Ci\u003Ecertiorari\u003C\/i\u003E","first_party":"Hugo Abisai Monsalvo Velazquez","second_party":"Merrick B. Garland, Attorney General","timeline":[{"event":"Granted","dates":[1719896400],"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_timeline\/case_timeline\/55518"},{"event":"Argued","dates":[1731391200],"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_timeline\/case_timeline\/55519"},{"event":"Decided","dates":[1745298000],"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_timeline\/case_timeline\/55643"}],"lower_court":{"ID":14,"name":"United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/taxonomy\/term\/14"},"facts_of_the_case":"\u003Cp\u003EMr. Vel\u00e1zquez, a Mexican citizen, entered the U.S. without authorization in 2005. In 2011, the Department of Homeland Security sought to remove him and served a deficient Notice to Appear that lacked time and place details. In 2013, Vel\u00e1zquez admitted to unlawful entry and sought withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture. In March 2019, an Immigration Judge denied these requests but granted voluntary departure within 60 days. Vel\u00e1zquez appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), which dismissed his appeal in October 2021 and reinstated the 60-day voluntary departure period.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EOn December 13, 2021, Vel\u00e1zquez filed a motion to reopen his case to apply for cancellation of removal, arguing he had accrued 10 years of continuous presence due to his deficient Notice to Appear. The BIA denied this motion, finding Vel\u00e1zquez had not asserted \u201cnew facts\u201d and that the motion was untimely, filed after the 60-day voluntary departure period. Vel\u00e1zquez then filed a motion to reconsider, challenging only the timeliness determination, which the BIA also denied. Vel\u00e1zquez filed a petition for review in federal court, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit denied review, concluding that Mr. Vel\u00e1zquez failed to voluntarily depart or file an administrative motion within 60 calendar days, the maximum period provided by statute. 8 U.S.C. \u00a7 1229c(b)(2).\u003C\/p\u003E\n","question":"\u003Cp\u003EWhen a noncitizen\u2019s voluntary-departure period ends on a weekend or public holiday, is a motion to reopen filed the next business day sufficient to avoid the penalties for failure to depart under 8 U.S.C. \u00a7 1229c(d)(1)?\u003C\/p\u003E\n","conclusion":"\u003Cp\u003EUnder 8 U.S.C. \u00a71229c(b)(2), when a voluntary-departure deadline falls on a weekend or a legal holiday, the deadline extends to the next business day. Justice Neil Gorsuch authored the 5-4 opinion of the Court, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe term \u201c60 days\u201d in \u00a71229c(b)(2) carries a specialized legal meaning, not simply counting calendar days. In legal contexts, deadlines typically roll over when they land on nonbusiness days, and since at least the 1950s, immigration regulations have incorporated that practice. Congress enacted \u00a71229c(b)(2) within the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 amid this longstanding regulatory background. Other deadlines enacted in the same statutory section also follow the specialized meaning of \u201cdays,\u201d and the government concedes that those deadlines extend past weekends and holidays. It is presumed that identical terms in the same section of a law carry the same meaning unless Congress indicates otherwise, which it did not here.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EArguments suggesting that voluntary departure deadlines should be treated differently from other filing deadlines are unavailing. The text and regulatory history do not support any distinction between \u201cprocedural\u201d and \u201csubstantive\u201d actions, nor does the fact that Congress newly set a 60-day limit rather than adopting an existing regulatory timeframe. Applying the specialized legal understanding of \u201cdays\u201d ensures consistency with both regulatory history and the statutory structure. Thus, Monsalvo Vel\u00e1zquez\u2019s voluntary departure deadline, which fell on a Saturday, lawfully extended to the following Monday.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJustice Clarence Thomas filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justice Samuel Alito joined, and Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett joined in part.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJustices Alito and Barrett each filed separate dissenting opinions, and Justice Kavanaugh joined each of them.\u003C\/p\u003E\n","advocates":[{"advocate":{"ID":63723,"name":"Gerard J. Cedrone","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/gerard_j_cedrone","view_count":0,"last_name":"Cedrone","roles":null,"thumbnail":null,"length_of_service":0,"identifier":"gerard_j_cedrone"},"advocate_description":"for the Petitioner","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_advocate\/case_advocate\/23632"},{"advocate":{"ID":17293,"name":"Anthony A. Yang","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/anthony_a_yang","view_count":0,"last_name":"Yang","roles":null,"thumbnail":null,"length_of_service":0,"identifier":"anthony_a_yang"},"advocate_description":"for the Respondent","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_advocate\/case_advocate\/23633"}],"oral_argument_audio":[{"id":25669,"title":"Oral Argument - November 12, 2024","public_note":null,"unavailable":false,"display_title":null,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_media\/oral_argument_audio\/25669"}],"citation":{"volume":"604","page":null,"year":"2025","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_citation\/case_citation\/28032"},"decisions":null,"first_party_label":"Petitioner","second_party_label":"Respondent","heard_by":[{"ID":63493,"name":"Roberts Court (2022-)","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/courts\/roberts13","view_count":0,"members":[{"ID":15086,"name":"John G. Roberts, Jr.","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/john_g_roberts_jr","view_count":0,"last_name":"Roberts","roles":[{"id":2730,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1127970000,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"George W. Bush","role_title":"Chief Justice of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2730"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32683,"mime":"image\/png","size":52305,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/john_g_roberts_jr\/john_g_roberts_jr.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":7428,"identifier":"john_g_roberts_jr"},{"ID":15100,"name":"Clarence Thomas","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/clarence_thomas","view_count":0,"last_name":"Thomas","roles":[{"id":2744,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":688194000,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"George H. W. Bush","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2744"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32680,"mime":"image\/png","size":49064,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/clarence_thomas\/clarence_thomas.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":12518,"identifier":"clarence_thomas"},{"ID":15068,"name":"Samuel A. Alito, Jr.","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/samuel_a_alito_jr","view_count":0,"last_name":"Alito","roles":[{"id":2712,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1138687200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"George W. Bush","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2712"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32684,"mime":"image\/png","size":44799,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/samuel_alito_jr\/samuel_alito_jr.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":7304,"identifier":"samuel_a_alito_jr"},{"ID":15131,"name":"Sonia Sotomayor","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/sonia_sotomayor","view_count":0,"last_name":"Sotomayor","roles":[{"id":2776,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1249707600,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Barack Obama","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2776"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32685,"mime":"image\/png","size":50379,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/sonia_sotomayor\/sonia_sotomayor.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":6019,"identifier":"sonia_sotomayor"},{"ID":15094,"name":"Elena Kagan","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/elena_kagan","view_count":0,"last_name":"Kagan","roles":[{"id":2738,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1281157200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Barack Obama","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2738"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32690,"mime":"image\/png","size":44456,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/elena_kagan\/elena_kagan.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":5655,"identifier":"elena_kagan"},{"ID":62836,"name":"Neil Gorsuch","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/neil_gorsuch","view_count":0,"last_name":"Gorsuch","roles":[{"id":3506,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1491541200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Donald J. Trump","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3506"}],"thumbnail":{"id":79753,"mime":"image\/png","size":121461,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/neil_gorsuch.thumb__0.png"},"length_of_service":3220,"identifier":"neil_gorsuch"},{"ID":17766,"name":"Brett M. Kavanaugh","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/brett_m_kavanaugh","view_count":0,"last_name":"Kavanaugh","roles":[{"id":3507,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1538802000,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Donald J. Trump","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3507"}],"thumbnail":{"id":80518,"mime":"image\/png","size":91566,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/Kavanaugh-thumb.png"},"length_of_service":2673,"identifier":"brett_m_kavanaugh"},{"ID":63282,"name":"Amy Coney Barrett","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/amy_coney_barrett","view_count":0,"last_name":"Barrett","roles":[{"id":3511,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1603774800,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Donald J. Trump","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3511"}],"thumbnail":{"id":81207,"mime":"image\/png","size":47722,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/barret-thumb.png"},"length_of_service":1921,"identifier":"amy_coney_barrett"},{"ID":33869,"name":"Ketanji Brown Jackson","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/ketanji_brown_jackson","view_count":0,"last_name":"Jackson","roles":[{"id":3520,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1656565200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":null,"role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3520"}],"thumbnail":{"id":82011,"mime":"image\/png","size":58056,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/thumbnail_ketanji_brown_jackson.png"},"length_of_service":1310,"identifier":"ketanji_brown_jackson"}],"court_start":1656565200,"images":null,"identifier":"roberts13"}],"decided_by":{"ID":63493,"name":"Roberts Court (2022-)","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/courts\/roberts13","view_count":0,"members":[{"ID":15086,"name":"John G. Roberts, Jr.","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/john_g_roberts_jr","view_count":0,"last_name":"Roberts","roles":[{"id":2730,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1127970000,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"George W. Bush","role_title":"Chief Justice of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2730"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32683,"mime":"image\/png","size":52305,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/john_g_roberts_jr\/john_g_roberts_jr.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":7428,"identifier":"john_g_roberts_jr"},{"ID":15100,"name":"Clarence Thomas","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/clarence_thomas","view_count":0,"last_name":"Thomas","roles":[{"id":2744,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":688194000,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"George H. W. Bush","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2744"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32680,"mime":"image\/png","size":49064,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/clarence_thomas\/clarence_thomas.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":12518,"identifier":"clarence_thomas"},{"ID":15068,"name":"Samuel A. Alito, Jr.","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/samuel_a_alito_jr","view_count":0,"last_name":"Alito","roles":[{"id":2712,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1138687200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"George W. Bush","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2712"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32684,"mime":"image\/png","size":44799,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/samuel_alito_jr\/samuel_alito_jr.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":7304,"identifier":"samuel_a_alito_jr"},{"ID":15131,"name":"Sonia Sotomayor","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/sonia_sotomayor","view_count":0,"last_name":"Sotomayor","roles":[{"id":2776,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1249707600,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Barack Obama","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2776"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32685,"mime":"image\/png","size":50379,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/sonia_sotomayor\/sonia_sotomayor.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":6019,"identifier":"sonia_sotomayor"},{"ID":15094,"name":"Elena Kagan","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/elena_kagan","view_count":0,"last_name":"Kagan","roles":[{"id":2738,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1281157200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Barack Obama","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/2738"}],"thumbnail":{"id":32690,"mime":"image\/png","size":44456,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/people\/elena_kagan\/elena_kagan.thumb.png"},"length_of_service":5655,"identifier":"elena_kagan"},{"ID":62836,"name":"Neil Gorsuch","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/neil_gorsuch","view_count":0,"last_name":"Gorsuch","roles":[{"id":3506,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1491541200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Donald J. Trump","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3506"}],"thumbnail":{"id":79753,"mime":"image\/png","size":121461,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/neil_gorsuch.thumb__0.png"},"length_of_service":3220,"identifier":"neil_gorsuch"},{"ID":17766,"name":"Brett M. Kavanaugh","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/brett_m_kavanaugh","view_count":0,"last_name":"Kavanaugh","roles":[{"id":3507,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1538802000,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Donald J. Trump","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3507"}],"thumbnail":{"id":80518,"mime":"image\/png","size":91566,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/Kavanaugh-thumb.png"},"length_of_service":2673,"identifier":"brett_m_kavanaugh"},{"ID":63282,"name":"Amy Coney Barrett","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/amy_coney_barrett","view_count":0,"last_name":"Barrett","roles":[{"id":3511,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1603774800,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":"Donald J. Trump","role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3511"}],"thumbnail":{"id":81207,"mime":"image\/png","size":47722,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/barret-thumb.png"},"length_of_service":1921,"identifier":"amy_coney_barrett"},{"ID":33869,"name":"Ketanji Brown Jackson","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/people\/ketanji_brown_jackson","view_count":0,"last_name":"Jackson","roles":[{"id":3520,"type":"scotus_justice","date_start":1656565200,"date_end":0,"appointing_president":null,"role_title":"Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States","institution_name":"Supreme Court of the United States","href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/preson_role\/scotus_justice\/3520"}],"thumbnail":{"id":82011,"mime":"image\/png","size":58056,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/sites\/default\/files\/filefield_paths\/thumbnail_ketanji_brown_jackson.png"},"length_of_service":1310,"identifier":"ketanji_brown_jackson"}],"court_start":1656565200,"images":null,"identifier":"roberts13"},"term":"2024","location":null,"opinion_announcement":[{"id":25867,"title":"Opinion Announcement - April 22, 2025","unavailable":false,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_media\/opinion_announcement_audio\/25867"}],"description":"A case in which the Court held that when a noncitizen\u0027s voluntary-departure period ends on a weekend or public holiday, a motion to reopen filed the next business day is sufficient to avoid the penalties for failure to depart under 8 U.S.C. \u00a7 1229c(d)(1).","written_opinion":[{"id":17923,"title":"Dissenting opinion","author":null,"type":{"value":"dissenting","label":"Dissenting opinion"},"justia_opinion_id":5039365,"justia_opinion_url":"https:\/\/supreme.justia.com\/cases\/federal\/us\/604\/23-929\/","judge_full_name":"Clarence Thomas","judge_last_name":"Thomas","title_overwrite":null,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_document\/written_opinion\/17923"},{"id":17924,"title":"Dissenting opinion","author":null,"type":{"value":"dissenting","label":"Dissenting opinion"},"justia_opinion_id":5039366,"justia_opinion_url":"https:\/\/supreme.justia.com\/cases\/federal\/us\/604\/23-929\/","judge_full_name":"Samuel A. Alito, Jr.","judge_last_name":"Alito","title_overwrite":null,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_document\/written_opinion\/17924"},{"id":17925,"title":"Dissenting opinion","author":null,"type":{"value":"dissenting","label":"Dissenting opinion"},"justia_opinion_id":5039367,"justia_opinion_url":"https:\/\/supreme.justia.com\/cases\/federal\/us\/604\/23-929\/","judge_full_name":"Amy Coney Barrett","judge_last_name":"Barrett","title_overwrite":null,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_document\/written_opinion\/17925"},{"id":17926,"title":"Opinion of the Court","author":null,"type":{"value":"majority","label":"Opinion of the Court"},"justia_opinion_id":5039368,"justia_opinion_url":"https:\/\/supreme.justia.com\/cases\/federal\/us\/604\/23-929\/","judge_full_name":"Neil M. Gorsuch","judge_last_name":"Gorsuch","title_overwrite":null,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_document\/written_opinion\/17926"},{"id":17927,"title":"Syllabus","author":null,"type":{"value":"syllabus","label":"Syllabus"},"justia_opinion_id":5039369,"justia_opinion_url":"https:\/\/supreme.justia.com\/cases\/federal\/us\/604\/23-929\/","judge_full_name":null,"judge_last_name":null,"title_overwrite":null,"href":"https:\/\/api.oyez.org\/case_document\/written_opinion\/17927"}],"related_cases":null,"justia_url":"https:\/\/supreme.justia.com\/cases\/federal\/us\/604\/23-929\/","argument2_url":null}