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DOJ does not object to stay of Guanlao’s case
The U.S. government took no position on Stephen Woodruff’s request to allow him withdraw as counsel for a Filipino mother who is challenging an order for her removal from the CNMI.
If the U.S. District Court for the NMI does allow Woodruff to withdraw, then the U.S. government would not object to staying Amalia Abo Guanlao’s case, according to Kimberly Helvey, senior litigation counsel for the Department of Justice Office of Immigration.
That would allow Guanlao to get a new lawyer, she said.
Guanlao is suing then-U.S. Department of Homeland Secretary Jeh Johnson and several U.S. immigration officials to contest her removal from the CNMI. She has two U.S. children, both minors.
In his motion to withdraw, Woodruff said to his observation, Guanlao is now unable to accept his advice, think clearly about her case, or grasp his explanation of matters related to her case.
Woodruff said Guanlao has repeated errors in her perception and understanding of matters relating to her case.
U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona has stayed Guanlao’s removal while the court hears her petition.
In his request to withdraw, Woodruff said he fears that the improper conduct of DOJ, who is counsel for the respondents, has permanently damaged the attorney-client relationship.
He said if the court grants his motion to withdraw, the respondents’ motion to disqualify him as counsel for Guanlao should be denied on the merits, not as moot.
Woodruff said he believes that Guanlao had been very poorly served by her previous lawyers.
Woodruff said he is firmly convinced that the removal proceedings against Guanlao were illegal and that there is no legal or moral justification for the way she has been treated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and now DOJ’s Office of Immigration Litigation.
Last Jan. 12, the respondents, through DOJ, filed a motion to disqualify Woodruff, who has been disbarred from practice in the CNMI courts. A disciplinary case against Woodruff is pending in the District Court for the NMI to determine whether to impose reciprocal discipline.
