Judge Burroughs Issues New Stay Blocking Trump Administration's Somalia TPS Termination
A Massachusetts federal judge has again halted the Trump administration’s attempt to end Temporary Protected Status for Somalia, issuing a fresh administrative stay after plaintiffs reframed their lawsuit on constitutional grounds.
In Boston, Judge Allison Burroughs issued a new administrative stay that temporarily blocks the Trump administration’s plan to terminate Temporary Protected Status for Somali nationals. The stay follows an amended lawsuit filed by African Communities Together and other plaintiffs, who now argue that the Department of Homeland Security’s action violates the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process and Equal Protection clauses because the decision was effectively made before a proper review, citing President Trump’s November 2025 social-media post.
The order arrives after the First Circuit Court of Appeals overturned comparable stays for Ethiopia and South Sudan, citing the Supreme Court’s Mullin decision limiting lower-court interference with TPS terminations. DHS General Counsel James Percival and Iowa Solicitor General Eric Wessan condemned the stay as judicial obstruction and questioned the legal merit of the remaining claim. The dispute highlights ongoing tensions over immigration policy, judicial authority, and alleged racial discrimination in the administration’s approach to TPS designations.
Why it matters
The ruling determines whether Somali refugees retain protection while courts grapple with the limits of judicial intervention in immigration policy.
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