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The lawsuit argues that Cuccinelli is not empowered to act as interim director and that any direction issued as such is therefore invalid.
Cuccinelli, who took office at the agency on 10 June, does not fulfill the legal requirements to sit as a director under the Federal Vacancy Reform Act ("FVRA") and the Constitution. , argues the trial.
The case was filed by Democracy Forward and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. on behalf of seven asylum seekers and the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, a non-profit organization. which provides legal services to immigrants.
The groups are asking the court to declare the directions illegal and to prevent the agency from continuing to enforce them.
"These illegal instructions from an illegally appointed official punish asylum seekers fleeing persecution and undermining American values," said Democracy Forward executive director Anne Harkavy.
USCIS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
One of the changes involved is to reduce the time available to asylum seekers to prepare for their credible interview on fear, the first step in many asylum cases.
Until recently, asylum seekers generally had "48 hours from the date of notification of their interview or arrival" to prepare their interviews. This has been reduced to a "full calendar day", according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed against the Department of Homeland Security and the USCIS, also challenges a directive to remove "extensions" to prepare for interviews, as well as to terminate the legal guidance in person for the vulnerable populations.
Before the guidelines, asylum seekers could apply for an extension if they needed more time to hire a lawyer, consult a lawyer or gather evidence, according to the complaint.
"Now, prosecution is virtually banned," reads the trial.
The advocacy groups also contend that the guidelines violate other federal laws, in part because they compromise the ability of asylum seekers to prepare their interviews and have been implemented without notice or comment. .
The Department of Homeland Security and the USCIS have inflicted "substantial irreparable harm" on asylum seekers currently detained at the South Texas Family Residential Center's immigration detention center in Dilley, Texas, according to the lawsuit .
Following the changes in the agency, the asylum seekers concerned and others "are currently being returned to countries where they risk persecution and violence," says the lawsuit.
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