Background
Patria Laureano petitioned for review in an immigration matter involving the Attorney General. The Third Circuit had entered an opinion and judgment on May 29, 2026.
Both Laureano and the government filed petitions for rehearing. The court submitted the petitions to the judges who participated in the decision and to the other available active circuit judges.
The Court’s Holding
The Third Circuit denied Laureano’s petition for rehearing because no judge who concurred in the decision requested rehearing and a majority of the active judges did not vote for rehearing.
The court granted the government’s petition for rehearing en banc after a majority of the active judges voted in favor. It vacated the May 29, 2026 opinion and judgment, directed Laureano to file a supplemental response brief by noon on September 21, 2026, and scheduled en banc oral argument for October 14, 2026. The order did not decide the merits of the immigration dispute.
Key Takeaways
- The government obtained rehearing before the en banc Third Circuit.
- The court denied Laureano’s separate rehearing petition.
- The panel’s May 29, 2026 opinion and judgment are vacated and no longer constitute the court’s operative disposition.
Why It Matters
The order resets the appeal for consideration by the en banc court, leaving the underlying legal issues unresolved until the full court issues a new decision.
For practitioners, the vacatur is immediately significant because the prior opinion cannot be treated as the Third Circuit’s controlling resolution of the case while en banc proceedings remain pending.