Deportation Defense Attorney in San Antonio, Texas

What Removal Proceedings Actually Are

Removal proceedings are civil cases heard in immigration court, part of the Executive Office for Immigration Review inside the Department of Justice. They are not criminal cases. There is no jury, no bail schedule, and no public defender. You have the right to counsel under INA 292, but at your own expense.

The government is represented by a DHS trial attorney. The judge decides two questions in sequence: whether you are removable as charged, and if so, whether you qualify for any relief that allows you to stay. Losing the first question does not mean losing the case. Most successful removal defenses concede or contest removability and then win on relief.

How a Case Begins: The Notice to Appear

Every removal case starts with a Notice to Appear, Form I-862. This document lists the factual allegations against you and the specific sections of the Immigration and Nationality Act the government says you violated. It is filed with the immigration court, and the case formally begins on filing.

The NTA matters far more than most people realize. Under INA 240A(d)(1), service of a valid NTA stops the clock on continuous physical presence, which can destroy eligibility for cancellation of removal. The Supreme Court addressed defective notices in Pereira v. Sessions and again in Niz-Chavez v. Garland, holding that an NTA must be a single document containing the time and place of the hearing to trigger that stop-time rule. We still see NTAs that fail this standard, and we read every one line by line before the first hearing.

Who Faces Removal Proceedings in Texas

The people we see in immigration court fall into a few recurring categories.

• Long-term residents with no status, often here fifteen or twenty years, placed into proceedings after a traffic stop or a workplace encounter
• Lawful permanent residents charged as removable because of a criminal conviction, sometimes decades old
• People who entered without inspection near Eagle Pass or Del Rio and were released with a court date
• Visa overstays who married a U.S. citizen and did not file in time
• People with a prior removal order who returned, which raises reinstatement issues under INA 241(a)(5)

Each of these paths leads to a different defense. A green card holder facing a controlled substance charge needs a very different strategy than a mother of three U.S. citizen children who has been in San Angelo since 2009.

Forms of Relief From Removal

Relief is what keeps someone in the country. The realistic options include:

Adjustment of status. If you were inspected and admitted or paroled and have an immediately available immigrant visa, you may be able to become a permanent resident in front of the judge under INA 245(a). This is one of the most common and most winnable defenses. See adjustment of status in removal proceedings.

Cancellation of removal for permanent residents. Under INA 240A(a), an LPR needs seven years of continuous residence after any lawful admission, five years as a permanent resident, and no aggravated felony conviction.

Cancellation of removal for non-permanent residents. Under INA 240A(b), this requires ten years of continuous physical presence, good moral character, no disqualifying convictions, and proof that removal would cause exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to a U.S. citizen or LPR spouse, parent, or child. Congress caps these grants at 4,000 per year nationwide, which affects timing.

Waivers. Certain grounds of inadmissibility and removability can be waived. Our immigration waivers page covers the I-601 and related filings.

Humanitarian protections. U visas for crime victims, VAWA self-petitions for abused spouses and children, and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status can all be pursued while a case is pending but the procedural path differs. USCIS generally retains jurisdiction over the underlying U visa, VAWA I-360, and SIJ I-360 petitions, while the immigration court may continue with removal proceedings unless there is a separate basis for continuance, administrative closure, termination, or other relief. These applications may affect the strategy and timing of the removal case but filing them does not automatically stop removal proceedings.

Military parole in place. For spouses, parents, and children of service members and veterans, parole in place can convert an unlawful entry into a lawful basis for adjustment. As a veteran-owned firm, we look for this early in every case involving a military family.

Voluntary departure. Under INA 240B, leaving on your own terms preserves the ability to return lawfully later and avoids the ten-year bar that follows a removal order. It is not a win, but it is sometimes the best available outcome.

Detention and Bond

Whether someone is detained changes everything. Under INA 236(a), most people are eligible to ask an immigration judge for release on bond. Under INA 236(c), certain criminal grounds trigger mandatory detention with no bond available at all.

The line between those two categories has been the subject of significant agency and court activity, and DHS has taken increasingly broad positions about who falls under mandatory detention, particularly for people who entered without inspection. That question is actively litigated and the answer can differ depending on when and where the case is heard. It is worth having counsel who is tracking it rather than relying on what was true two years ago.

If a family member has been picked up and you do not know where they are, our detainee consultation page explains how to locate them and what to gather before the first call.

How a Case Moves

The Stages of a Removal Case

Detained dockets in Texas can run from first hearing to decision in a matter of weeks. Non-detained dockets can stretch for months and therefore you need to be prepared for the next step soon after being released. That difference drives nearly every strategic decision in the case.

Mistakes That Damage a Removal Case

Missing a hearing. Failure to appear generally results in an in absentia removal order under INA 240(b)(5). Reopening one is possible but difficult, and the clock is short.

Not updating the court address. Form EOIR-33 must be filed within five days of any move. Most in absentia orders we see trace back to a hearing notice mailed to an old address.

Taking a criminal plea without immigration advice. Padilla v. Kentucky requires defense counsel to advise on immigration consequences, but the advice is often thin. A plea that seems harmless in county court can be an aggravated felony in immigration court. Call before the plea, not after.

Filing an application that reveals a fatal problem. Applications are evidence. A poorly prepared filing can hand the DHS attorney the charge they were missing.

Using a notario. In Texas, a notario público is not an attorney. We have taken over cases where an unlicensed preparer filed a frivolous asylum application that permanently barred the client from other relief.

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Hire a Board-Certified Immigration Attorney

Fewer than five percent of Texas immigration attorneys are Board-Certified in Immigration and Nationality Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. Attorney Alfredo Lozano holds that distinction, and since founding the firm in 2006 he has brought a Marine Corps veteran's discipline, more than 20 years of immigration experience, and a fully bilingual team to every case the firm handles.

Our approach combines personalized counsel with the documentation rigor these cases demand, so your petition is prepared correctly the first time. Board Certification means the state has independently verified his experience, tested his knowledge, and confirmed his standing among peers, which is the kind of assurance that matters when your family's future is on the line.

Learn About Our Firm

Meet

Our Team

Our team includes experienced attorneys, legal professionals, and client-care specialists who share a common commitment: making the immigration process as clear and manageable as possible for every family we serve.

Alfredo Lozano

Managing Attorney

Board-Certified in Immigration and Nationality Law and a Marine Corps veteran who leads every case strategy.

Linda Hamilton

Attorney

Guides families and employers through petitions, waivers, and interviews with steady, detailed advocacy.

Minerva Gonzalez

Legal Assistant

Prepares documentation and keeps every case organized, accurate, and moving forward.

Mayra Juarez

Legal Administrator

Coordinates case management and client communication across our three Texas offices.

Meet Our Full Team

What Happens in San Antonio, Eagle Pass, and San Angelo

Practicing removal defense in South and West Texas has particular rhythms.

Detained clients from Bexar County are frequently held at facilities in Frio and Karnes counties, and cases from the Eagle Pass and Del Rio corridor often route through Laredo or Pearsall. Transfers happen with little notice, and a case can move to a different court while the family is still driving to the old one.

The San Antonio Immigration Court handles the non-detained docket for much of the region, and its scheduling pressure is real. San Angelo clients face a different problem entirely, which is distance. There is no immigration court in Tom Green County, so families are traveling several hours for hearings that may last fifteen minutes. We plan around that from the outset, including remote appearances where the court permits them.

Border proximity also shapes the evidence. In Maverick County we regularly work with clients whose continuous presence has to be proven through school records, church membership, clinic visits, and money order receipts rather than tax returns or leases.

Talk to a Board-Certified Immigration Attorney

Removal defense rewards early work. The bond motion filed in week one, the plea negotiated with immigration consequences in mind, the NTA challenged before the master calendar hearing: these are the moments that decide cases, and they close quickly.

Schedule your free deportation defense consultation with Alfredo Lozano. The Lozano Law Firm is a veteran-owned, bilingual practice with offices in San Antonio, Eagle Pass, and San Angelo, and Mr. Lozano is Board Certified in Immigration and Nationality Law and a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Learn more about our firm or read Alfredo Lozano's background.

Deportation Defense FAQs

Lozano Law Firm focuses exclusively on the practice areas listed above. We do not handle asylum or criminal immigration cases. When clients come to us with needs outside our scope, we refer them to trusted colleagues who specialize in those areas. Our referral network includes attorneys who handle asylum claims and criminal immigration consequences, so every person who contacts us receives direction toward the right help.

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