Brooks Law Firm Obtains Historic Federal Court Order Blocking 75-country Visa Ban

Brooks Law Firm obtains second ever preliminary injunction granted against State Department's 75 Country Nationality-Based Visa Pause.

MEDFORD, MA, UNITED STATES, June 3, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Brooks Law Firm announced a major federal court victory after U.S. District Judge Leo T. Sorokin of the District of Massachusetts granted a preliminary injunction blocking the State Department's so-called "Nationality-Based Pause" as applied to its client's immigrant visa case. The ruling, issued on June 2nd, 2026 in Civil No. 25-12804-LTS Ullah v. LaFave and Rubio is one of only two such preliminary injunctions granted by a federal court in the country.

The Nationality-Based Pause, announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in January 2026, suspended immigrant visa issuances for nationals of 75 countries. It directed consular officers to refuse visa applications from those countries under INA Section 221(g) — even when the officer found no independent legal grounds to deny the visa.

Attorney Carl Hurvich of Brooks Law Firm argued the case on behalf of the firm's client, an elderly United States citizen living in Lynn, Massachusetts, who has been fighting to reunite with his adult son since 2015.

Judge Sorokin found that the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on the merits, concluding that the Nationality-Based Pause violates federal immigration law by overriding the individualized visa adjudication authority vested by Congress in consular officers. The court found that the INA does not authorize the Secretary of State to categorically bar entire nationalities from immigrant visa eligibility regardless of individual circumstances, and that the harm to the family could not be compensated by money damages.

The defendants are now ordered to immediately lift the pause as applied to the firm's client's visa application.

Carl Hurvich is a Senior Associate Attorney at Brooks Law Firm, admitted to practice in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York, and before the First Circuit Court of Appeals. A graduate of Oberlin College and the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, he focuses his practice on complex immigration matters including removal defense, federal court litigation, and cases at the intersection of criminal and immigration law. He has appeared before Immigration Court, USCIS, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and state and federal courts throughout the region.

Brooks Law Firm is also actively enrolling participants in a separate 39-Country Immigration Ban Mass Litigation.

ABOUT BROOKS LAW FIRM

Brooks Law Firm is a Medford, Massachusetts based immigration and personal injury law firm serving clients across Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire. With 16 attorneys and 37 paralegals, the firm is one of the region's leading immigration practices. Brooks Law Firm is the firm for immigrants — built by people who understand what is at stake.

Brooks Law PC
+1 617-245-8090
media@brookslawfirm.com

Brooks Law Firm Media Team
Brooks Law PC
+1 617-245-8090
media@brookslawfirm.com
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