Federal Judge Dismisses Department of Justice Lawsuit Over New Jersey Immigration Executive Order

A federal judge in New Jersey dismissed the Justice Department's challenge to Governor Mikie Sherrill's Executive Order No. 12 on 4 September 2026, rejecting the government's claims that the measure unlawfully interferes with federal civil immigration enforcement.

Sherrill signed the order on 11 February. It restricts federal immigration officers from entering, accessing or using nonpublic areas of property owned, operated, leased or controlled by covered New Jersey executive-branch agencies for civil immigration enforcement unless they have a judicial warrant.

The order also bars those agencies from allowing federal immigration officers to use state property as a staging area, processing location or operations base for civil immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant. It does not prevent federal authorities from entering areas open to the general public on the same terms as other members of the public.

The Justice Department filed its lawsuit against New Jersey and Sherrill on 23 February, arguing that Executive Order No. 12 violated the U.S. Constitution's Supremacy Clause. The complaint alleged that the order obstructed federal immigration enforcement and made some operations less safe. Those assertions were allegations advanced by the federal government, not findings by the court.

Judge Rejects Three DOJ Claims

U.S. District Judge Georgette Castner granted New Jersey and Sherrill's motion to dismiss on 4 September. Before addressing the merits, Castner found that the United States had Article III standing to pursue its claims, including because it had sufficiently alleged that the order could interfere with federal immigration operations.

The Justice Department advanced three principal theories. It argued that federal immigration law pre-empted the New Jersey order, that the measure directly regulated the federal government and that it unlawfully discriminated against federal officers.

Castner rejected the pre-emption claim. In her opinion, she found that the federal provisions cited by the government did not require New Jersey to provide state property or assistance for federal civil immigration enforcement. She wrote that Congress had contemplated state assistance with immigration enforcement on a voluntary basis.

The judge also said that interpreting federal law to compel New Jersey to provide such assistance would conflict with the anti-commandeering principle, which limits the federal government's ability to require states to administer or support federal programmes.

Castner separately rejected the Justice Department's direct-regulation theory. She found that New Jersey was acting as a proprietor by defining what activities could take place on its property rather than directly regulating how federal officers perform their duties.

The opinion also found that Executive Order No. 12 did not substantially interfere with federal operations. Castner noted that immigration enforcement could still occur near state courthouses, in public areas of state courthouses and in federal, county and municipal courthouses.

On the discrimination claim, Castner concluded that state and local law-enforcement officers were not similarly situated to federal immigration officers because civil immigration enforcement is a federal function. She therefore found that the government had not plausibly alleged unlawful discrimination under intergovernmental-immunity principles.

New Jersey Officials Welcome Dismissal

New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport welcomed the ruling in a statement issued on 4 September, saying the state had maintained from the outset that the executive order was 'plainly lawful.'

Davenport said the order reflected the Sherrill administration's commitment to protecting state workers and residents and said her office would continue working with the governor to protect immigrant communities.

Sherrill also issued a statement after the ruling, saying the decision supported her administration's position on restricting federal immigration officers' access to nonpublic state property.

The ruling leaves Executive Order No. 12 in effect after the Justice Department's federal challenge was dismissed at the district-court level. The order continues to apply to covered New Jersey executive-branch property while preserving access to public areas and other exceptions set out in its text, including compliance with valid judicial warrants and judicial orders.