They Were Told They Had Given Up Their Green Cards; Lion’s Law Proved Otherwise

On June 3, 2024, when an elderly married couple arrived at Boston Logan International Airport after visiting family in China, they expected to return home as they always had—with

their valid green cards in hand. Instead, a Customs and Border Protection officer looked at a computer screen and told them that they had abandoned their lawful permanent resident status.

The couple was stunned. They had never knowingly surrendered their green cards. They had never signed the permanent residence abandonment forms giving up their permanent residency. Yet, within minutes, their green cards were confiscated, and they were sent to secondary inspection.

They were given a Notice to Appear in Boston Immigration Court and paroled into the United States while the immigration court determined whether they could remain. For months, the couple searched for help. They could remain in the country temporarily, but the fundamental question had not been answered: Were they still lawful permanent residents? The couple faced the frightening possibility of being separated from the family and life they had established in the United States.

They eventually were referred to Lion’s Law — and what followed was a painstaking investigation and representation that ultimately led an immigration judge to conclude that the couple had never lawfully abandoned their permanent resident status. The case demonstrates what can happen when competent advocacy does more than accept what appears in a government record. Lion’s Law dug into the documents, reconstructed the couple’s history, identified inconsistencies, assembled years of evidence, retained a forensic document examiner, and presented the complete case to the immigration court.

Identify Evidence to Show No Intent to Abandon

We discovered that two Form I-407s had been submitted in their names. Form I-407 is the federal document used to record the abandonment of lawful permanent resident status. A genuine I-407 can have enormous consequences: it reflects a voluntary decision by a permanent resident to surrender that status. The couple had never seen or signed the forms, neither had they ever agreed to abandon their green cards.

The couple eventually remembered a former tenant, Yupeng Sun, whom they had trusted enough to help with government paperwork. In doing so, they had provided him with personal information. After a dispute with a member of the family, however, Sun allegedly used that information to submit the two I-407 forms while the couple was overseas.

When the couple retained Lion’s Law, we began by determining exactly where the couple stood procedurally and whether they were at risk of detention or removal before their hearing. That initial work gave the legal team the time necessary to investigate the case thoroughly rather than forcing the elderly clients into rushed decisions.

We examined the forms line by line. The documents contained a series of contradictions that did not fit the couple’s actual history. The forms stated that the couple's green cards had been lost and could not be returned. Yet the couple had departed the United States using those cards, returned on the same cards, and physically surrendered them to CBP at the airport. The overseas address listed on the forms was an old address in China. And the stated explanation for abandoning permanent residency claimed that the couple had lived their entire lives in China, experienced culture shock and social isolation in the United States and felt more comfortable remaining in China. This is inconsistent with the couple’s experience. They had immigrated to the United States years earlier and lived with their only child and continued to maintain substantial ties to the United States.

One of the firm's most important strategies was to reconstruct the couple’s life in the United States through documents. We assembled evidence to show the couple’s continued residence, such as bank statements, rent payment records, continued use of driver’s license, records of using green cards enter and exit the United States, car insurance, records of genuine signatures on many documents. Taken together, the records told a very different story from the I-407 forms. The documentary trail showed two people who continued to maintain meaningful ties to the United States—not people who had voluntarily walked away from their permanent resident status.

But we recognized that the case needed more than an argument based on circumstantial evidence. The firm needed objective proof.

The Breakthrough - A Forensic Handwriting Examination

We retained a very experienced forensic document examiner to determine whether the signatures on the I-407 forms actually belonged to the couple. The expert examined years of checks, applications, and other documents containing known signatures. She also obtained additional writing samples directly from the couple, including repeated samples of the alphabet and their names in English. After conducting thorough examination, the forensic expert concluded that the signatures on the two I-407 forms had not been written by the couple.

We had two powerful and complementary forms of evidence. First, we reconstructed the couple’s actual life and demonstrated the numerous contradictions between their history and the I-407 forms. Second, an independent forensic expert provided objective evidence that the signatures themselves were not theirs.

Taking the Case to Immigration Court

We assembled the evidence into a comprehensive motion and presented it to the immigration court. The case proceeded through two hearings. At the Individual Hearing, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) argued that the couple had abandoned their permanent resident status and therefore should be returned to China. The couple testified that they had never signed or seen the I-407 forms. We presented extensive documentary evidence demonstrating the inconsistencies between the forms and the couple’s actual history. And the forensic document examiner testified about her examination and conclusions concerning the signatures. DHS attorney cross-examined clients.

After considering the testimony, documentary evidence, expert opinion, and arguments of both sides, the immigration court found that the couple was not removable. The court determined that the I-407 forms had no legal effect and that the couple’s permanent resident status had never been lawfully abandoned. After the ruling, the couple applied to USCIS for replacement green cards.

More Than a Legal Victory

For the elderly couple, the decision meant far more than obtaining replacement documents. It meant preserving their home. It meant remaining with their family. And it meant that a fraudulent document did not succeed in taking away the life they had built in the United States. The months leading up to the hearing were profoundly difficult for them. They faced the possibility of losing their ability to remain in the United States and being separated from their family. That uncertainty followed them every day.

For Lion’s Law, representing the couple meant more than filing papers and appearing in court. It meant carefully investigating what had happened, identifying the weaknesses in the government record, finding evidence that could withstand scrutiny, and giving the immigration judge a complete and credible picture of the truth. We did not simply tell the court that the couple had been wronged. We proved it.

An Important Lesson to Keep Your Personal Information Confidential

The case also carries an important warning for everyone. Be extremely careful about who receives copies of your private identifiable information, such as passport, green card, driver's license, Social Security information, immigration documents. Documents that appear harmless when provided to someone for assistance with paperwork can become powerful tools in the wrong hands.

The case also demonstrates the importance of preserving ordinary records. Rental records, bank statements, insurance records, utility bills, travel histories, government applications, and old signatures may seem routine. But when a person’s immigration status is challenged, those records can become critical evidence of where that person lived, what ties they maintained, and what their intentions actually were.

A Final Word

In August 2026, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts filed criminal charges against Yupeng Sun concerning alleged fraudulent voter registration and voting. Public filings associated with that case documented the two forged immigration forms and summarized the immigration court’s finding that the couple’s testimony was credible and that their permanent resident status was reinstated [1].

For the couple, however, the significance of the case goes beyond the criminal allegations. They came to Lion’s Law after being told that they had given up the right to live in the United States.

They left the case with their status restored, their family still together and their trust in the legal system renewed.

This article is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or financial advice. If you need assistance with a legal matter, please contact Lion’s Law at 617-682-7111 or consult an attorney.