1.0 Introduction: Our Commitment to Lawful and Principled Conduct
Navigating an immigration enforcement action requires a clear, legally-grounded protocol to protect the company, its management, and all employees. An encounter with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a high-stakes event where ambiguity and improvisation create significant legal and operational risks. This manual provides a definitive framework for management to act with confidence, consistency, and compliance, ensuring that our response is designed to mitigate liability and uphold our core principles.
Our approach to any law enforcement encounter is guided by a commitment to legal compliance and the well-being of our entire workforce. This document codifies that commitment into actionable procedures designed to create a defensible record of our conduct.
Guiding Principles
- Lawful Compliance: We will comply with all valid, legal obligations presented by law enforcement officials, while respectfully declining to consent to actions for which they do not have legal authority. This preserves the company’s constitutional rights and prevents the establishment of a precedent of voluntary, warrantless searches.
- Protection of Rights: We recognize that all individuals in the United States have constitutional rights, regardless of their immigration status. Our procedures are designed to protect these rights and ensure that no employee is subjected to unlawful questioning or search.
- Workplace Professionalism: Our response will be calm, orderly, and professional. By maintaining control and adhering to our established plan, we minimize operational disruption and anxiety for all staff, thereby reducing the risk of an escalated confrontation.
- Clear Chain of Command: Only specifically designated and trained personnel are authorized to speak with law enforcement on behalf of the company. This ensures our response is consistent, legally sound, and preserves legal privilege.
This manual provides step-by-step procedures for management and front-desk personnel to prepare for, respond to, and manage the aftermath of an ICE visit or a Form I-9 audit. It is the single source of truth for these scenarios.
Mastering these protocols begins with proactive preparation, the most critical phase for mitigating risk and ensuring a controlled response.
2.0 Proactive Preparedness: Establishing a Response Framework
The most effective strategy to mitigate legal risk, minimize operational disruption, and ensure a controlled response during an ICE visit is to have a comprehensive plan in place before one occurs. Proactive preparation transforms a potentially chaotic and high-risk event into a managed process. It empowers management to act decisively, protects the rights of our employees, and demonstrates the company's commitment to orderly and lawful conduct, creating a defensible posture in any subsequent legal review.
2.1 The Four Pillars of Preparedness
Our preparedness strategy is built on four essential pillars.
- Develop a Written Response Plan A formal, written plan is indispensable. It eliminates guesswork by outlining specific roles, responsibilities, and step-by-step procedures for every stage of an enforcement action. This manual serves as the foundation of that plan. All managers must be thoroughly familiar with its contents and practice its protocols to ensure a consistent and legally defensible response.
- Designate and Train Key Personnel A clear chain of command is critical. We must designate in advance who is authorized to interact with law enforcement. All other employees should be instructed not to answer questions and to direct agents to the designated company representative. This protocol ensures that our communication is controlled, accurate, and legally protected.
- Law Enforcement Contact Protocol
| Order |
Name |
Title/Company |
Phone Number |
| 1 |
|
|
|
| 2 |
|
|
|
| 3 |
|
|
|
| 4 |
|
|
|
| 5 |
|
|
|
| 6 |
|
Attorney, Outside Counsel |
|
| 7 |
|
Attorney, Outside Counsel |
|
| 8 |
|
Attorney, Outside Counsel |
|
- Secure Legal Counsel It is imperative to identify and retain a qualified immigration lawyer before an incident occurs. This ensures that expert legal advice is immediately available during a raid, audit, or other enforcement action. The contact information for our designated legal counsel must be included in the Law Enforcement Contact Protocol table above to facilitate immediate contact and preserve legal privilege from the outset of an encounter.