February 10, 2017 – On February 9, 2017, a U.S. federal appeals court unanimously upheld a temporary suspension of President Trump's Executive Order that restricted travel from seven Muslim-majority countries (Iran, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Sudan and Somalia). The court found that the federal government failed to demonstrate during its appeal that it had sufficient merit for its case. The judges wrote: "We hold that the Government has not shown a likelihood of success on the merits of its appeal, nor has it shown that the failure to enter a stay would cause irreparable injury." 

President Trump's travel ban had been put in effect on January 27, 2017, and was later suspended on February 3, 2017 by a district court in Washington State. The district court concluded that significant and ongoing harm was being inflicted on substantial numbers of people, to the detriment of the United States, by means of the Executive Order, and the U.S. federal appeals court agreed with this finding.

Nonetheless, it is important to note that the federal government has the option to appeal this decision to the Supreme Court.

We will continue to monitor the changes and provide updates as they come available. For additional information on the specifics of your case, please contact us. 


Join Our Next Webinar Discussing Canadian & U.S. Immigration on Thursday, February 23, 2017

Inside Immigration is a monthly call featuring Green and Spiegel's immigration lawyers covering a broad range of topics in immigration law, including:

  • Recent Developments
  • Trends in Immigration Law
  • Expert Insight

This month's webinar will focus on a wide variety of  U.S./Canadian cross-border issues that are of interest to many businesses and individuals on both sides of the border. This month's speakers are Green and Spiegel's very own:

Tim Golden, Attorney at Law (Massachusetts) & Licensed as Foreign Legal Consultant (Ontario) - U.S. Practice Director
LinkedIn, Twitter 

Valerie Kleinman, Associate
LinkedIn, Twitter


Register Here


The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.