Opinion ID: 789869
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: jurisdiction

Text: 10 As a threshold matter, we consider whether we have jurisdiction to address Biwot's claim that he was denied the right to counsel. The government contends that we do not because Biwot failed to exhaust his administrative remedies. We disagree. 11 Although we may not review a final order of removal unless an alien has exhausted all administrative remedies, 8 U.S.C. § 1252(d)(1), Barron v. Ashcroft, 358 F.3d 674, 678 (9th Cir.2004), Biwot raised the claim of denial of counsel during the administrative process. He consistently asked the IJ for a reasonable extension to obtain counsel. Biwot's Notice of Appeal to the BIA stated, During my case hearing I never had a legal representative because I was detained and took several days to contact family. I didnt [sic] know how my constitutional rights were conducted. The Notice of Appeal not only identified as an error Biwot's lack of representation, but it also alluded to the reason he was unable to obtain a lawyer — lack of time. Because Biwot was pro se at the time, we liberally construe his appeal, Barron, 358 F.3d at 676 n. 4, and conclude that the Notice of Appeal sufficiently preserved the denial of counsel claim. 12 The basis of the BIA's decision raises a second potential barrier to our review. The BIA held that it lacked jurisdiction because Biwot waived his right to appeal. See 8 C.F.R. § 1003.3(a)(1) (A Notice of Appeal may not be filed by any party who has waived appeal....); 8 C.F.R. § 1003.39 ([T]he decision of the [IJ] becomes final upon waiver of appeal....). Although the BIA is certainly correct in a semantic sense, simply concluding that Biwot waived his appeal begs the question whether the waiver was valid. 13 A waiver of the right to appeal a removal order must be considered and intelligent or it constitutes a deprivation of the right to appeal and thus of the right to a meaningful opportunity for judicial review. United States v. Pallares-Galan, 359 F.3d 1088, 1096 (9th Cir.2004) (quoting United States v. Leon-Paz, 340 F.3d 1003, 1005 (9th Cir.2003)). Biwot's statement that he would not appeal can hardly be characterized as considered and intelligent. His comment that he was accepting the IJ's decision because he could not do anything right now reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of the effect of a waiver of appeal. Biwot was the victim of a double disadvantage — he was under the misapprehension that he had no choice but to waive his appeal and he labored under that cloud because he had been denied counsel. Surely an attorney would have disabused Biwot of any misconceptions about the conclusive effect of his statement. Because the waiver of appeal was not knowing and considered, the waiver does not strip us of jurisdiction.