Opinion ID: 3062720
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: IJ’s Initial Ruling

Text: Following her removal hearing on May 31, 2007, the IJ denied Louis all relief. In so doing, the IJ applied the new credibility standards in the REAL ID Act of 2005 to Louis’s supplemental asylum application and hearing testimony. Without explicitly discrediting Louis, the IJ stated that, based on certain inconsistencies, Louis was not entitled to a presumption of credibility and that Louis should have provided corroborating evidence to establish that her alleged persecution was on account of a protected ground. On appeal, the BIA concluded that Louis’s proceedings were not governed by the REAL ID Act because her original asylum application was filed before the 4 Act’s effective date. The BIA remanded proceedings for the IJ to assess Louis’s asylum application under the pre-REAL ID Act standards.