Videoconferencing in Removal Hearings: A Case Study of the ...

Inadmissibility Grounds: The provisions in the Immigration and Nationality Act that
the Government uses to charge an alien seeking admission to the United States. Grounds
of inadmissibility can range from health-related grounds to past convictions for certain
criminal offenses. Aliens already present in the United States are subject to different
rules. See Deportation Grounds above.
Individual Calendar Hearing: Also known as a merits hearing, an individual calendar
hearing is a final hearing before an immigration judge to determine whether an alien in
removal proceedings should be ordered removed. The hearing is a kind of trial, in which
the parties may make opening and closing statements, present witnesses, and submit
evidence. The immigration judge makes both legal and factual findings in a merits
hearing. Unlike most trials in state and federal court, the rules of evidence are relaxed in
merits hearings, and the immigration judge may sometimes question witnesses.
Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR): A lawful permanent resident is an alien who is
entitled to live and work in the United States and to travel outside the United States, but
who can be subject to removal proceedings if convicted of certain criminal offenses.
Master Calendar Hearing: A master calendar hearing is a hearing that occurs prior to
the merits hearing, in which the immigration judge makes findings with respect to issues
such as whether the charging document was properly served, whether the alien is
removable as charged, and what applications for relief may be filed. At the master
calendar hearing, the alien will typically plead to the charges and state which applications
for relief (s)he intends to file.
Notice to Appear (NTA): The notice to appear is the charging document served upon an
alien that initiates removal proceedings and that gives the alien notice of the legal and
factual bases for removal.
Removal: The process by which a person is deported from or found inadmissible to the
United States for violations of the immigration laws, including criminal offenses.
Undocumented Alien: An individual who has no lawful status in the United States. The
individual may have originally entered lawfully but overstayed a visa, or may have
originally entered without any documents and “without inspection,” i.e., by evading the
normal port of entry or border checkpoint where documents are checked by an
immigration agent.
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