State of Hawaii v. Trump

Filing 261

MOTION for Leave to File Brief of HIAS as Amicus Curiae in Support of Plaintiffs' Motion to Convert Temporary Restraining Order to a Preliminary Injunction Lisa W. Munger appearing for Amicus HIAS (Attachments: # 1 Attachment [Brief of Amicus Curiae ISO Plaintiffs' Mtn to Convert TRO to a PI], # 2 Certificate of Service)(Munger, Lisa)

GOODSILL ANDERSON QUINN & STIFEL
A LIMITED LIABILITY LAW PARTNERSHIP LLP
LISA WOODS MUNGER
3858-0
[e-mail]
First Hawaiian Center
999 Bishop Street, Suite 1600
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
Telephone: [phone]
Facsimile: [phone]
DECHERT LLP
G. ERIC BRUNSTAD, JR. (Pro Hac Vice Pending)
[e-mail]
90 State House Square
Hartford, Connecticut 06103
Telephone: [phone]
Facsimile: [phone]
Attorneys for Amicus Curiae
HIAS
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF HAWAII
STATE OF HAWAI‘I and ISMAIL
ELSHIKH,
Plaintiffs,
vs.
DONALD J. TRUMP, in his official
capacity as President of the United
States; U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
HOMELAND SECURITY; JOHN F.
KELLY, in his official capacity as
Secretary of Homeland Security; U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE; REX
TILLERSON, in his official capacity as
6308254.1

CV. NO. 1:17-cv-00050 DKW-KJM
MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE
BRIEF OF HIAS AS AMICUS
CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO
CONVERT TEMPORARY
RESTRAINING ORDER TO A
PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION;
ATTACHMENT; CERTIFICATE OF
SERVICE
Related Dkt. No. 238

Secretary of State; and the UNITED
STATES OF AMERICA,

HEARING
Date:
March 29, 2017
Time:
9:30 a.m.
Judge:
Hon. Derrick Watson

Defendants.

MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE BRIEF OF HIAS AS AMICUS CURIAE
IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO CONVERT TEMPORARY
RESTRAINING ORDER TO A PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION
HIAS hereby submits this motion for leave to file the attached amicus curiae
brief in support of Plaintiffs’ Motion to Convert Temporary Restraining Order to a
Preliminary Injunction (the “Motion”) in the above-captioned matter.
1.

HIAS is a non-profit refugee resettlement agency and one of nine

federally designated organizations that resettles refugees in collaboration with the
Department of State and Department of Health and Human Services. HIAS is the
oldest refugee resettlement agency in the world and the only Jewish refugee
resettlement agency. Founded in 1881 to protect Jewish people fleeing pogroms in
Russia and Eastern Europe, HIAS’s mission today is to protect people of all
backgrounds who are persecuted on the basis of who they are or what they believe.
HIAS has helped over 4.5 million people worldwide escape persecution.
2.

HIAS has a substantial interest in the outcome of this case. President

Donald J. Trump’s Executive Order No. 13780, entitled “Protecting the Nation
from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States” (the “Executive Order”),
raises issues that go to the heart of HIAS’s mission and values.
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Bearing a

disturbing resemblance to the government-endorsed acts once taken against the
Jewish people, the Executive Order effectively heightens stigma and polarization
against one religious group, and communicates to the world that the United States
government supports the religious discrimination of Muslims. As an organization
with a longstanding mission to protect individuals and families against the
dangerous consequences of religious discrimination, HIAS has a strong interest in
curtailing any government undertaking that institutionalizes such discrimination
under the guise of public safety. More importantly, HIAS fears for the safety of its
clients, whose lives literally depend on their resettlement in the United States. As
a result of the Executive Order’s ban on immigration, thousands of refugees would
be unable to obtain the safety and freedom that was promised to them and that
every human being deserves if the order goes into effect. HIAS has a strong
interest in ensuring that the government does not preclude refugees from attaining
lives free of persecution, and that the individual voices of these men, women, and
children are heard amidst any and all rhetoric or policy that encourages the public
to categorically disregard them.
3.

HIAS believes that it is in a special position to inform the Court about

the unique struggles of refugees and the harm that they suffer as a consequence of
the Executive Order. Unless stayed, the harm that would be imposed by the
Executive Order on certain groups of people is a central issue in this litigation and
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at the heart of this controversy. Plaintiffs’ Motion and the previous Motion for
Temporary Restraining Order (Doc. No. 65) focus on the impact that the Executive
Order has on the State of Hawaii and its residents, but the order’s impact on
refugees is much broader and deserving of attention. HIAS offers this brief to give
the Court a comprehensive understanding of the unique and immediate harm that
would be suffered by refugees from around the globe due to the Executive Order if
the order goes into effect.
4.

HIAS files this motion as a precaution, as neither the Federal Rules of

Civil Procedure nor this Court’s local rules expressly address the procedure for
filing an amicus curiae brief.
5.

Plaintiffs have consented to the filing of this amicus curiae brief.

6.

Defendants take no position on the filing of this amicus curiae brief.

7.

HIAS previously joined an earlier amicus curiae brief addressed to

different issues in this case.
8.

HIAS has been granted leave to file an amicus curiae brief

substantially similar to the one offered here in other litigation involving the
Executive Order.
CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, HIAS hereby requests that the Court grant leave
to file an amicus curiae brief in support of Plaintiffs’ Motion.
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Dated: Honolulu, Hawai‘i, March 28, 2017.

/s/ Lisa Woods Munger
LISA WOODS MUNGER
G. ERIC BRUNSTAD, JR. (Pro Hac Vice Pending)
Attorneys for Amicus Curiae
HIAS

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