Opinion ID: 3053913
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Statute of Limitations or Statute of Repose

Text: [2] “There is a crucial distinction in the law between ‘statutes of limitations’ and ‘statutes of repose.’ Statutes of repose are not subject to equitable tolling.” Munoz v. Ashcroft, 339 F.3d 950, 957 (9th Cir. 2003). Whether INA § 245(i) is a statute of repose or a statute of limitations subject to equitable tolling is a question of first impression for the federal circuits. However, we have analyzed a number of other deadlines imposed by Congress to determine whether or not they constitute statutes of limitation or repose. Compare, Albillo-De Leon v. Gonzales, 410 F.3d 1090, 1098 (9th Cir. 2005) (finding that § 203(c) of the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (“NACARA”) was a statute of limitations subject to equitable tolling), with Munoz, 339 F.3d at 956-57 (finding that § 203(a) of NACARA was a statute of repose not subject to equitable tolling), and Carrillo-Gonzalez v. INS, 353 F.3d 1077, 1079 (9th Cir. 2003) (holding that equitable tolling did not apply to the congressionallymandated, one-year deadline of the Diversity Immigration Visa Lottery Program for 1997). “Statutes of limitation are primarily designed to assure fairness to defendants and to promote the theory that even if one has a just claim it is unjust not to put the adversary on notice to defend within the period of limitation and that the right to be free of stale claims in time comes to prevail over the right to prosecute them.” Albillo-De Leon, 410 F.3d at 1095 (internal quotations and citations omitted). In essence, “such limitations relieve courts of the burden of adjudicating stale claims when a plaintiff has slept on his rights.” Id. [2] On the other hand, a statute of repose is a “fixed, statutory cutoff date, usually independent of any variable, such as claimant’s awareness of a violation.” Munoz, 339 F.3d at 957. “A statute of repose cuts off a cause of action at a certain time irrespective of the time of accrual of the cause of action.” Weddel v. Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 100 F.3d 929, 14950 BALAM-CHUC v. MUKASEY 931 (9th Cir. 1996). Perhaps the most distinguishing characteristic of a statute of repose is that it establishes “an outer date for bringing an action” instead of a variable period of time during which a plaintiff must assert her claim. Id. Thus, we have noted that statutes of repose act “ ‘as the endpoint of the definite time period in which Congress would permit a specific class of potential annuitants to file applications,’ ” which function “ ‘as a condition defining and closing the class.’ ” Id. (quoting Iacono v. Office of Pers. Mgmt., 974 F.2d 1326, 1328 (Fed. Cir. 1992)). For example, in Munoz we decided that deadlines imposed by NACARA § 203(a) constitute a statute of repose. 399 F.3d at 957. That statute imposed an April 1, 1990, cutoff date for asylum applications from Guatamalan nationals and a December 31, 1991, cutoff date for special rule cancellation applications from Guatamalan nationals who had registered for certain settlement benefits. NACARA § 203(a), Pub. L. No. 105-100, 111 Stat. 2160. We held that § 203(a) constituted a statute of repose because the deadlines at issue were “fixed by statute and unrelated to any variable” and through the “retroactive cutoff dates, Congress closed the class via a statute of repose.” Munoz, 339 F.3d at 957. [3] As in NACARA § 203(a), here Congress has created a fixed statutory cutoff date, independent of any variable, and the deadline effectively closes the class of individuals entitled to special treatment under a statutory initiative. The statute requires aliens to file a visa petition “on or before April 30, 2001” to qualify for adjustment of status. INA § 245(i). This is a specific date that marks the close of a class, not a general period based on discovery of an injury or accrual of a claim. Our decision in Munoz compels the conclusion that INA § 245(i) is a statute of repose. Balam-Chuc relies on our decision in Albillo-De Leon v. Gonzales, 410 F.3d 1090 (9th Cir. 2005), to support his position that § 245(i) is a statute of limitations. In Albillo-De BALAM-CHUC v. MUKASEY 14951 Leon, we interpreted § 203(c) of NACARA—not to be confused with § 203(a) discussed above—and found that the deadline constituted a statute of limitations. 410 F.3d at 1098. Section 203(c) provides a period for aliens to file a motion to reopen removal or deportation proceedings if they become eligible for relief under NACARA’s other provisions. NACARA § 203(c), Pub. L. No. 105-100, 111 Stat. 2160. The statute provides that “[t]he period shall begin not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of [NACARA] and shall extend for a period not to exceed 240 days,” giving the Attorney General final discretion to fix the date. Id. In Albillo-De Leon we distinguished Munoz based on a combination of three unique factors: (1) section 203(c) served a limited purpose and applied to a specific, small group of people that had already complied with the deadlines imposed by § 203(a), (2) the time deadline did not “identify a specific cutoff date by which a petitioner must file his or her motion to reopen proceedings,” and (3) the legislative history specifically indicated an intent to subject the soft deadline to equitable tolling principles. 410 F.3d at 1097-98. None of these three circumstances is present here. Rather, § 245(i) applies to all aliens who filed a visa petition before April 30, 2001, and were present in the United States on the statute’s date of enactment. This can hardly be characterized as a statutory provision with a “limited purpose” that applies to a specific, small group of people. See Albillo De-Leon, 410 F.3d at 1097. Unlike NACARA § 203(a), which did not impose a specific cutoff date, INA § 245(i) requires all aliens who wish to apply for an adjustment of status to submit a visa petition by a hard deadline—April 30, 2001. Finally, there is no indication in the legislative history that Congress specifically intended the courts to apply tolling principles to § 245(i). Rather, the legislative history appears to recommend that the agencies responsible for enforcing the statute should accept petitions filed after the deadline in the exercise of their executive discretion. See 146 CONG. REC. S11851 (Dec. 15, 2000) (statement of Sen. Kennedy). A brief reference in the 14952 BALAM-CHUC v. MUKASEY legislative history recommending agency discretion does not give this court authority to construe a strict cutoff deadline as a statute of limitations. Thus, Albillo-De Leon does not apply here, and we are bound by our decision in Munoz. B. Due Process Right to Effective Assistance of Counsel [4] Balam-Chuc also argues that his counsel’s ineffective assistance in preparing and filing his visa petition constitutes a deprivation of due process. “Ineffective assistance of counsel in a deportation proceeding is a denial of due process under the Fifth Amendment if the proceeding was so fundamentally unfair that the alien was prevented from reasonably presenting his case.” Lopez v. INS, 775 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1985). [5] However, we have established that due process rights to assistance of counsel do not extend beyond the fairness of the hearing itself. Lara-Torres v. Ashcroft, 383 F.3d 968, 973-76 (9th Cir. 2004). For example, in Lara-Torres, the petitioners faced removal because their attorney had taken an erroneous legal strategy and given faulty legal advice. Id. at 973. The petitioners brought a challenge based on ineffective assistance and a violation of due process. Id. We dismissed the petition because [n]one of [Petitioner’s] purported deficiencies pertain to the actual substance of the hearing (e.g., evidence presented or omitted, arguments raised or overlooked), let alone call the hearing’s fairness into question. The basic “unfairness” of which the Petitioners complain is that they never would have been subject to removal proceedings had it not been for their reliance on [their lawyer’s] unfortunate immigration-law advice. This “unfairness,” however, did not taint the “fairness” of the hearing. BALAM-CHUC v. MUKASEY 14953 Id. at 973. Indeed, in order to find ineffective assistance of counsel in this context we held that the legal services must be rendered “while proceedings were ongoing.” Id. at 974. [6] Here, Balam-Chuc’s attorney failed to properly file a visa petition within the statutorily required deadline. This deficiency does not relate to the substance of an ongoing hearing; in fact, no proceedings had begun at the time the alleged attorney misconduct took place. Thus, as in Lara-Torres, we reject Balam-Chuc’s attempt “to cast such an expansive and amorphous Fifth Amendment due process right that encompasses legal assistance removed from the actual process itself.” Id. at 975. Although the failings of Balam-Chuc’s attorney in this case have resulted in terrible consequences for him and his family, the Fifth Amendment simply does not apply to the preparation and filing of a petition that does not relate to the fundamental fairness of an ongoing proceeding.