January 27, 2026 | On January 12, the Civil Litigation Department filed an Opening Brief in the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of our client, Mr. Halil Demir, Executive Director of the Zakat Foundation of America. The case challenges Mr. Demir’s presumed placement on the terrorist watchlist and ongoing secondary screening since at least 2016. Mr. Demir is a humanitarian who has been invited to speak to U.S. government agencies and with officials both in the U.S. and abroad, and yet he continues to recieve the “SSSS” each time he travels.
The district court below misinterpreted the relevant law to determine it has no jurisdiction to review Mr. Demir’s claims. We are appealing to ask the Seventh Circuit to reverse the district court’s decision and give Mr. Demir his day in court.
