Certificate of Citizenship

Passports: Edwards v. Bryson in 2013

United States views on international law [1] in relation to Passports: Edwards v. Bryson: The Third Circuit reaffirmed its holding in Moreno in another case decided on August 26, 2013, Edwards v. Bryson, No. 12-3670, 2013 WL 4504783 (3d Cir. Aug. 26, 2013). In Edwards, the plaintiff brought a declaratory judgment action under § 1503 following denial of a certificate of citizenship. The district court held that the plaintiff satisfied his prima facie burden by producing an expired U.S. passport, and the Government had failed to satisfy its burden of presenting clear and convincing evidence to disprove the U.S. Secretary of State's prior determination. On appeal, the Third Circuit reversed, in light of the holding in Moreno (discussed in this legal encyclopedia), and remanded the case with directions to enter judgment in favor of the Government. Excerpts from the court's opinion appear below.

Some Aspects of Passports: Edwards v. Bryson

Edwards's declaratory judgment action entitled him to a de novo proceeding before an Article III court to determine whether he is a United States citizen. Delmore v. Brownell, 236 F.2d 598, 599 & n.1 (3d Cir. 1956). In the § 1503(a) proceeding before the District Court, Edwards bore “the burden of proving his citizenship by a preponderance of the evidence.” Id. at 600. The District Court held that Edwards's expired passport was sufficient to satisfy this burden. Edwards v. Bryson, 884 F. Supp. 2d 202, 205-06 (E.D. Pa. 2012). The District Court's decision relied principally on 22 U.S.C. § 2705. Section 2705 provides that a “passport, during its period of validity (if such period is the maximum period authorized by law), issued by the U.S. Secretary of State to a citizen of the United States” will serve as conclusive proof of United States citizenship. 22 U.S.C. § 2705. In light of § 2705 and because Edwards had been issued a passport, the District Court held that, although there was a dispute as to whether “an expired passport can serve as conclusive proof of citizenship, there is no doubt that it is sufficient to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that Edwards is a U.S. citizen.” Edwards, 884 F. Supp. 2d at 206. While Edwards's appeal was pending, we interpreted 22 U.S.C. § 2705 as providing that a passport will serve as conclusive proof of United States citizenship only if “its holder was actually a citizen of the United States when the passport was issued.” United States v. Moreno, — F.3d —, No. 12-1460, 2013 WL 3481488, at *3 (3d Cir. July 3, 2013). Here, however, the District Court held that, under § 2705, Edwards's expired passport was conclusive proof of his citizenship, even though there was no evidence that he was actually a citizen when his passport was issued to him. Edwards, 884 F. Supp. 2d at 206. This ruling is inconsistent with our decision in Moreno. It is acknowledged by the parties that Edwards was not already a citizen of the U.S. when his passport was issued in 1991. Edwards's argument has been that he is a U.S. citizen based on the passport issued to him. He has made no showing that, at the time he obtained the passport, he was a U.S. citizen. Under Moreno, therefore, his passport is not conclusive proof of his U.S. citizenship and he has failed to meet his burden under 8 U.S.C. § 1503(a). See Delmore, 236 F.2d 598, 600.

Resources

Notes

1. Passports: Edwards v. Bryson in the Digest of United States Practice in International Law