U.S. District Judge rules Title 42 rule used to expel migrants is unlawful

U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan on Tuesday ruled that the Trump-era Title 42 immigration rule was "arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act."

Sullivan's 49-page opinion said the rule, which has been used to deport migrants at least 2 million times under the auspices of COVID-19-related health concerns.

A group of asylum-seeking families had brought the suit against Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over the DHS enforcement of the rule.

Title 42 is an order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention allowing border officials to immediately deport migrants should they come from a nation known to host a communicable disease. The CDC imposed the order in March 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Biden administration, meanwhile, has sought to end the rule, though a Louisiana Judge in May imposed an injunction on the order's lift pending further litigation.

The disparate district judge rulings set the stage for a likely circuit split as the case proceeds, meaning Title 42 will likely reach the Supreme Court.