Opinion ID: 789444
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Karouni's Contact with an Immigration Lawyer in 1987

Text: 50 The IJ found that Karouni's contact with an immigration lawyer in 1987 to determine if Karouni could legalize his immigration status was somewhat unusual because Karouni did not seek asylum until a decade later and never attempted to obtain derivative immigration status from his brother who is a United States citizen. This finding is not supported by substantial evidence either and again constitutes nothing more than the IJ's speculation and conjecture as to what someone in Karouni's position would have done. 51 Karouni testified that, in 1987, when he spoke with an immigration lawyer, Karouni did not independently know, and his lawyer did not tell him, that he could obtain derivative legal resident status from his brother or that asylum was available to him. Karouni also testified that, in 1987, he focused on obtaining lawful permanent resident status in the United States through his work. That the IJ found it hard to believe that an immigration lawyer would fail to explore all of Karouni's options for obtaining lawful status in the United States is nothing more than the IJ's generalization about what a knowledgeable and thorough immigration attorney should have done. Again, it is well-settled in this circuit that an IJ's speculation and conjecture cannot substitute for substantial evidence. See, e.g., Paramasamy, 295 F.3d at 1052. And we have already held that an IJ may not speculate as to why an alien did not apply for asylum immediately upon entry to the United States. See Guo v. Ashcroft, 361 F.3d 1194, 1201-02 (9th Cir.2004). In any event, Karouni's decade long delay in seeking asylum is also reasonable, given that he was unaware that he was even eligible for it and attempted to obtain lawful immigrant status through other means — namely, his work. 52