Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/boundvolumes/558bv.pdf
Page Number: 397.0

236 

KUCANA  v.  HOLDER 

Opinion of the Court 

on  the  BIA  by  regulation  would  ignore  Congress’  design  to  retain  for 
itself control over federal-court jurisdiction.  The Seventh Circuit’s con­
struction  would  free  the  Executive  to  shelter  its  own  decisions  from 
abuse-of-discretion  appellate  court  review  simply  by  issuing  a  regula­
tion  declaring  those  decisions  “discretionary.”  Such  an  extraordinary 
delegation  of  authority  cannot  be  extracted  from  the  statute  Congress 
enacted.  Pp. 251–252. 

533 F. 3d 534, reversed and remanded. 

Ginsburg,  J.,  delivered  the  opinion  of  the  Court,  in  which  Roberts, 
C.  J.,  and  Stevens,  Scalia,  Kennedy,  Thomas,  Breyer,  and  Soto-
mayor, JJ., joined.  Alito, J., ﬁled an opinion concurring in the judgment, 
post, p. 253. 

Rick  M.  Schoenﬁeld  argued  the  cause  for  petitioner. 
With  him  on  the  briefs  were  Michael  R.  Lang,  Elaine  J. 
Goldenberg, and Lindsay C. Harrison. 

Nicole  A.  Saharsky  argued  the  cause  for  respondent  in 
support of petitioner.  With her on the briefs were Solicitor 
General  Kagan,  Assistant  Attorney  General  West,  Deputy 
Solicitor  General  Kneedler,  Deputy  Assistant  Attorney 
General Osuna, Donald E. Keener, Jennifer P. Levings, and 
Melissa Neiman-Kelting. 

Amanda  C.  Leiter,  by  invitation  of  the  Court,  557  U. S. 
951,  argued  the  cause  and  ﬁled  a  brief  as  amicus  curiae  in 
support  of  the  judgment  below.  With  her  on  the  brief  was 
RonNell Andersen Jones.* 

Justice Ginsburg delivered the opinion of the Court. 
Petitioner  Agron  Kucana  moved  to  reopen  his  removal 
proceedings,  asserting  new  evidence  in  support  of  his  plea 

*Briefs  of  amici  curiae  urging  reversal  were  ﬁled  for  the  American 
Civil Liberties Union by Lee Gelernt, Steven R. Shapiro, and Lucas Gut­
tentag; for Law Professors by Anne Harkavy, Catherine M. A. Carroll, and 
Stephen I. Vladeck, pro se; and for the National Immigrant Justice Center 
et al. by Jeffrey T. Green, Quin M. Sorenson, and Charles Roth. 

Daniel  J.  Popeo  and  Richard  A. Samp  ﬁled  a  brief  for  the  Washington 

Legal Foundation et al. as amici curiae urging afﬁrmance.