Case: Pappas v. Blanche
1:26-cv-12194 | U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
Filed Date: May 14, 2026
Case Ongoing
Clearinghouse coding complete
Case Summary
This case challenges the termination of an Immigration Judge allegedly because of his national origin, age, and association with Latin American and Hispanic individuals and immigration rights organizations. On May 14, 2026, an appointed Immigration Judge of Greek origin filed this lawsuit in the District of Massachusetts. The plaintiff sued the U.S. Department of Justice under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VII”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq., the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”), 29 U.S.C. § 633a, and the First Amendment. The plaintiff sought declaratory, injunctive, and monetary relief against his former employer. District Judge Leo T. Sorokin was assigned to the case.
The plaintiff was appointed as an Immigration Judge with the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) for the Boston and Chelmsford, Massachusetts immigration courts on July 23, 2023. Immigration Judge appointments are routinely converted to permanent positions after an initial two-year term. During his initial term, the plaintiff consistently received the highest performance ratings available and was never disciplined or warned of any performance problems. The EOIR notified him on July 11, 2025, that his appointment would not be converted and that he would be terminated effective July 22, 2025.
On September 23, 2025, the plaintiff filed a formal discrimination complaint. On February 17, 2026, the DOJ issued a Final Agency Decision dismissing it for failure to state a claim, concluding that Immigration Judges are inferior officers subject to at-will removal under Article II and therefore outside the protections of Title VII and the ADEA. The decision further reasoned that restricting the President's removal authority over Immigration Judges would impermissibly limit executive power and declined to investigate the discrimination allegations.
The plaintiff then brought this suit and alleged that his termination was part of a broader pattern: of the 38 judges in his July 2023 cohort, an estimated 20 were not converted, and every judge with a Hispanic, Middle Eastern, or South Asian surname was terminated or not converted. He further alleged that the terminations were driven by EOIR memoranda issued in 2025 by the then-Attorney General and then-Acting EOIR Director. The department-wide memoranda announced the end of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts, expressed hostility toward noncitizens and noncitizen advocacy, accused immigration advocacy lawyers of committing immigration fraud, and alleged those lawyers were aligned with Democratic terrorism.
The plaintiff alleges that EOIR management, aware of his Greek heritage and his 20 years representing noncitizens as both a principal attorney and through pro bono service, declined to convert him, or other judges with similar backgrounds, to permanent positions, while converting judges with solely prosecutorial immigration law backgrounds, in violation of Title VII. The plaintiff also asserts a violation of the ADEA because a majority of the judges terminated or not converted were over 40, and a violation of the First Amendment because he was allegedly terminated for his political affiliations, including his association with immigrant rights organizations.
This case remains ongoing.
Summary Authors
Madeline Dollard (7/27/2026)
People
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73341545/parties/pappas-v-blanche/
Sorokin, Leo Theodore (Massachusetts)
Messing, Ellen J. (Massachusetts)
Simpson, Geoffrey Howard (Massachusetts)
Documents in the Clearinghouse
Docket
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73341545/pappas-v-blanche/
Last updated Aug. 30, 2026, 3:12 a.m.
Docket for: Pappas v. Blanche
Case Details
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: May 14, 2026
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Immigration Judge of Greek Origin, over 40, associated with immigrant rights organizations
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: No
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Federal
Department of Justice
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), 29 U.S.C. §§ 621 et seq.
Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2201
Constitutional Clause(s):
Other Dockets:
District of Massachusetts 1:26-cv-12194
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: None Yet / None
Relief Sought:
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
General/Misc.:
Case Summary of Pappas v. Blanche, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/48264/ (last updated 7/27/2026).