removal order

My friend got a removal order in 2005. Now he is married to a US citizen and filed I-485 and I-765. He did not applied for I-212 waiver. But he got EAD yesterday. Does this mean that his removal order has been automatically cancelled? If not, how could the US government grants him a right to work here while it still wants to deport him? Is this not a self-contradiction? Does he still need to file I-212 waiver? Thanks for your advices.