Robert Coughlon Jr. Book FIXING IMMIGRATION IN AMERICA Offers Reform Plan

The book proposes reforms to border security, immigration courts and ICE enforcement policy.

By: Rachel Stone Sep. 03, 2026

For millions of longtime undocumented immigrants, 'doing it the right way' may not be an option. Immigration attorney Robert Coughlon, Jr., says a central problem with America's immigration system is that the law itself can prevent people who have lived and worked in the United States for decades from obtaining legal status, even when they want to follow the rules.

In his new book, Fixing Immigration in America: A Common Sense Plan for Immigration Reform, Coughlon draws on more than 30 years of immigration law experience to propose a different approach: change the law to create an earned legal pathway for longtime residents while strengthening border security, reforming enforcement and immigration courts, and protecting the workforce essential to the nation's economy.

'Millions of long-term immigrant residents are already living in our communities, doing essential work in agriculture, construction, healthcare and manufacturing,' Coughlon said. 'Allowing these experienced workers to stay and contribute legally is not just practical, it is an economic necessity for national prosperity.'

Fixing Immigration in America offers workable solutions, including:

• Registry reform: Coughlon proposes updating a largely forgotten legal tool, Section 249, to create an earned path to legal status for peaceful, long-term residents.

• Independent immigration courts: The book argues for moving immigration judges out of Executive Branch control to restore judicial independence and address massive court backlogs.

• Targeted civil law enforcement: Coughlon proposes ICE reforms designed to restore agency integrity, establish a strict '50-mile rule' to prevent profiling and keep federal agents focused on serious transnational crime.

• Modernized border security: The book advocates deploying 100% non-intrusive inspection technology at ports of entry to help prevent drug trafficking.

• Economic realities: Coughlon examines how legal workforce channels could protect American agriculture, residential construction and national fiscal stability.

Written in clear, understandable language, yet packed with concrete legislative proposals for lawmakers, this book gives everyday Americans a straightforward guide to understanding the immigration crisis and the legislative changes Coughlon believes could help solve it.

Ira Kurzban, past national President and former General Counsel of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, calls the book 'an important contribution to the discussion of immigration reform.'

Book Details

Fixing Immigration in America: A Common Sense Plan for Immigration Reform

Publisher: Lucky 23 Media, LLC

Release date: Sept. 15, 2026

ISBN: 979-8995952411

Available from Amazon

About the Author

Robert Coughlon, Jr., graduated from the University of Iowa in 1990 with a bachelor's degree in English. In 1993, he graduated with a Juris Doctor degree from Whittier College School of Law. He is a member of the California and Arizona state bars. He has been practicing immigration law for over 30 years, primarily representing immigrants in family-based immigration petitions, naturalization and deportation defense. He lives in Phoenix, Arizona.

For more information, visit robertcoughlon.com.