For most people, the best thing to do is work with an attorney who’s a member of AILA. Immigration laws can change quickly, and being part of a professional association helps ensure that the attorney you’re working with is continually receiving new information.
These findings suggest that having an attorney to help navigate the complex removal process enhances the chance of success in removal proceedings. Source: Authors’ analysis of Executive Office for Immigration Review data, 2007–2012. Immigrants facing removal cannot obtain relief unless they apply for it.
Many law firms include immigration law as only one part of a broader portfolio of specialties. If immigration law is not the attorney’s primary focus, changing laws and accelerated enforcement may catch him or her off guard.
If you received a denial of your immigration case, appeal, motion, or application from the U.S. government, your attorney might seem like the natural person to blame. But don't be too quick to assume that your attorney made mistakes just because you did not receive the benefit you hoped for and requested.
The immigration process can be intimidating and take a long time, but hiring an immigration attorney to support you with your case can speed up the process and help you meet your goals.
Yes, the reality is once served a Notice To Appear at immigration court, the odds of winning are far less than 50-50. But that does not mean you cannot be one of the fortunate ones. Significant differences may exist between your case and the ones you heard about on the news.
civil lawShe added that immigration is civil law, not criminal law, and does not afford many protections afforded those accused of criminal law, such as the right to government-funded counsel.
The primary mission of the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is to adjudicate immigration cases by fairly, expeditiously, and uniformly interpreting and administering the Nation's immigration laws.
On average, cases completed during the first nine months of FY 2021 took 891 days (or 2.4 years) from the date of their Notice to Appear (NTA) to a decision, twice as long compared with 451 days (a little more than 1.2 years) on average during FY 2020.
between 6 months and one yearHow long does an immigration appeal take? Appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals usually take between 6 months and one year. But they can take longer if the case is particularly complex or the Board has many pending appeals.
To begin with, let's look at the four types of immigration status that exist: citizens, residents, non-immigrants and undocumented. The characteristics of each status are explained below. These are people who were either born in the U.S. or who have become "naturalized" after three or five years as permanent residents.
When immigrating to the US, there are four different immigration status categories that immigrants may fall into: citizens, residents, non-immigrants, and undocumented immigrants.
The simple answer, of course, is that it is impossible to know whether USCIS knows if an applicant for a green card or for naturalization is lying to them. The safe assumption is that they DO know everything about you and that, if you lie in the interview, you will be caught.
The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) held that an immigration judge may inquire into the bona fides of a marriage when considering an application for adjustment of status, even when the underlying I-130 petition has been approved by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
The Immigration Court is an administrative court within the Department of Justice (DOJ) responsible for adjudicating immigration cases in the United States.
Cancellation of Removalyou must have been physically present in the U.S. for 10 years;you must have good moral character during that time.you must show "exceptional and extremely unusual" hardship to your U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse, parent or child if you were to be deported.
For the same reasons, only an actual, practicing lawyer should be trusted to handle your immigration matters. Unfortunately, many non-lawyers; even some well-meaning ones, who don't recognize how complex this area of law really is; claim to be capable of assisting foreigners who need help with the immigration process.
Not even the best attorneys can guarantee success. Ultimately, the outcome of your case is up to an immigration judge, the Department of Homeland Defense and/or USCIS. Any attorney claiming he or she has a 100% success rate and guaranteeing you a particular outcome may need to be more closely evaluated.
A few "high-volume, low value" immigration attorneys prowl the hallways of immigration offices attempting to solicit business. This is not considered ethical behavior by the legal bar. Besides, any good immigration attorney is probably going to be too busy practicing immigration law and working for their clients to spend their time rounding up new clients this way.
However, a bad immigration lawyer can overcharge you, fail to provide the promised services, and/or damage your case in a way you might never recover from. Whether you are seeking to file a petition for a visa or green card, trying to avoid deportation, or applying for some other immigration benefit, make sure you get the right sort of lawyer on your side. Here are some tips to avoid the shadier types of practitioners.
If immigration law is not the attorney’s primary focus, changing laws and accelerated enforcement may catch him or her off guard. Knowledge and experience are the best defense, and dedicated visa immigration lawyers understand how to manage unique situations.
Scheduling a free immigration consultation with a reputable immigration attorney is the first step to solving your immigration problems. The team at Davis & Associates is eager to answer all of your questions and guide you on what your options are.
Experienced visa immigration lawyers or their associates have likely handled cases like yours. Asking about the lawyer’s track record is a reasonable request. Most importantly, the lawyer can describe the circumstances and the strategy used to achieve a favorable result, while explaining how the same approach could work for you. A good attorney will be happy to tell you about favorable outcomes, whether you’re asking about citizenship and naturalization , deportation , immigration appeals or visas.
The plan should include a timeline and defined deliverables. When you explain your case to an attorney, he or she will most likely have a good idea about what to do from the start – and after a good conversation, the attorney you’re working with will fine-tune a strategy that gets you the best possible outcome.
Integrity is important (especially because some attorneys accept cases and fees even when they believe there is no chance for success), and you want to work with an attorney who believes in what you’re trying to accomplish. Again, no attorney can guarantee a specific outcome.
The fact is that immigration law changes quickly – and new rules are implemented all the time. That means when a lawyer focuses on divorce, for example, he or she is more familiar with those aspects of law than with immigration law; that may not be good for your case. actice other types of law.
The adage that there is no substitute for experience is as true in immigration law as it is elsewhere. Knowing how immigration courts operate, understanding law enforcement, or even having gained the respect of the officials involved can put your case in a more favorable light. Attorneys who are familiar with court policies and procedures can navigate the system more easily than those who don’t – and it never hurts to work with a lawyer who has worked with immigration cases long enough to have earned a name for him- or herself.
Bring any forms the lawyer asked you to complete. These will usually include basic information, such as name, date of birth, and address. In addition, you should bring or send ahead copies of all documents related to your immigration case.
If you’re still in the early stages of searching for an immigration lawyer, a great place to start is the American Immigration Lawyers Association, also known as AILA.
If you have a criminal record, you should bring all related police reports and court documents. You must be open and honest about any arrests, even if they no longer appear on your record. Keeping your lawyer fully informed is important.
Immigration cases typically don’t resolve quickly. It’s important to be realistic about how long your specific case will take to move through the U.S. immigration process. Your lawyer should be able to create a plan of action that will give you a tentative timeline.
Immigration issues can be stressful and emotional for you and the people you love. You deserve to have a lawyer you trust.
Disclaimer: The Arizona Legal Center provides free legal aid and consultations in Arizona only. We provide low-cost access to fee-for-service cases when determined appropriate by an attorney at the Center, but generally do not undertake full-scope representation.
This is an important question. While no lawyer can guarantee that a case will go in your favor, they should be able to give you an idea of whether or not you have a good chance of a successful outcome.
The term immigration law is a broad term and covers everything from helping large corporations comply with immigration rules, to helping families live together and assisting asylum seekers fleeing war. It is a complex area of law and for this reason you need to be certain that your lawyer has experience of dealing with your particular type of application.
Immigration advice can be expensive. With this in mind, it is important that you know how much you are going to pay and what work it covers. Solicitors are required to publish all of their prices for immigration law advice with the exception of asylum advice and corporate services.
Many companies offer free initial advice before charges commence to give clients the opportunity to be completely sure that there is a valid application which can be made and also to give both the client and adviser the chance to get to know each other. Some companies will charge you from the moment you talk to a lawyer.
The fact that so few immigrants in deportation proceedings are represented by counsel is important because having an attorney is associated with successful immigration outcomes. The data show that immigrants with legal counsel were more likely to be released from detention, avoid being removed in absentia, and seek and obtain immigration relief.
In it, we reveal that 63 percent of all immigrants went to court without an attorney. Detained immigrants were even less likely to obtain counsel—86 percent attended their court hearings without an attorney. For immigrants held in remote detention centers, access to counsel was even more severely impaired—only 10 percent of immigrants detained in small cities obtained counsel.
Immigrants from Mexico were the least likely of any nationality group to be represented by counsel in their removal proceedings. Defining Terms: Detained, Released, and Never Detained Immigrants . This report uses a number of different terms to refer to the custody status of immigrants in removal proceedings.
Represented immigrants who were never detained were nearly five times more likely than their unrepresented counterparts to obtain relief if they sought it (63 percent with counsel versus 13 percent without).
Nationally, only 37 percent of all immigrants, and a mere 14 percent of detained immigrants, secured legal representation. Rates of legal representation varied by a number of factors including geographic location of the court and the immigrant’s nationality. Immigrants with court hearings in large cities were more likely to be represented than those with hearings in small cities. Immigrants from Mexico were the least likely of any nationality group to be represented by counsel in their removal proceedings.
The lack of appointed counsel may have a profound impact on immigrants’ ability to receive a fair hearing. Past research has highlighted the importance of counsel for asylum seekers, and regional studies have highlighted the important role attorneys play for immigrants navigating immigration courts in New York and San Francisco. Yet, up to now, the debate about access to counsel has proceeded with little reliable national information on how many immigrants facing deportation obtain attorneys, the barriers to accessing representation, and how such representation impacts the outcomes of their cases.
Addressing the barriers to obtaining legal counsel is important because having an attorney was strongly associated with positive outcomes. Represented immigrants were more likely to be released from detention. Represented immigrants were more likely to have their cases terminated, to seek relief from removal, and to obtain the relief they sought. In fact, detained immigrants with counsel, when compared to detained immigrants without counsel, were ten-and-a-half times more likely to succeed; released immigrants with counsel were five-and-a-half times more likely to succeed; and never detained immigrants with counsel were three-and-a-half times more likely to succeed.
A Denial Does Not Automatically Mean Your Attorney Made Mistakes. If you received a denial of your immigration case, appeal, motion, or application from the U.S. government, your attorney might seem like the natural person to blame. But don't be too quick to assume that your attorney made mistakes just because you did not receive ...
Common mistakes clients complain of include the attorney failing to respond to requests for evidence, not submitting the required documentation along with the immigration application, or not competently explaining options available in removal proceedings.
A classic example of ineffective assistance is when an attorney misses an important deadline that makes someone ineligible for an immigration benefit. For example, let's say your attorney forgets to submit an application for asylum within one year of your arrival in the United States, and the asylum officer or Immigration Judge finds that you are ineligible because of an unreasonable delay in filing. Your attorney might have also completed forms incorrectly, made false statements on your behalf, or presented fake documents with your application.
To be considered "ineffective," the attorney's poor performance (or lack of performance) must have materially affected ...
However, if your visa was denied because you clearly didn't meet the basic educational requirements, and your attorney told you that you would qualify for the work visa based on the information that you provided, you might be able to get other forms of relief, such as a refund of legal fees and application fees.
report whether a complaint of ethical or legal violations has been filed with the professional bar where your attorney is licensed to practice law, and if not, why you did not do so.
In some cases, the "lawyer" might not have been a licensed attorney in the first place. These "immigration consultants" are also known as notarios in the Spanish-speaking community. An immigration consultant could have made mistakes in your case or even charged you lots of money to apply for benefits for which you did not qualify, which put you at risk of being placed into removal proceedings.
If an Immigration Judge denies your case, you have 30 days to appeal the decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). If the BIA denies your appeal, you may be able to challenge this denial in the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals having jurisdiction over your case.
A deportable alien who is the parent, spouse, widow or child of a U.S. citizen may be eligible to apply to the Judge to adjust his status (using Form I-485) to that of a lawful permanent resident. Also qualified to apply for adjustment of status under section 245i of the law are many Persons whose priority dates for permanent residence are “current” and who had a labor certification or visa petition submitted on their (or their parents) behalf on or before April 30, 2001.
Eligibility for waivers of removal depend upon a person’s ability to establish hardship to his close family members if he were to be removed from the U.S. For example, a person who has committed fraud or a material misrepresentation may apply for a waiver under §212 (i) if the failure to admit him to the U.S. would result in “extreme hardship” to his lawful permanent resident (LPR) or U.S. citizen (USC) spouse or parents. Similarly, a person who is inadmissible on certain criminal grounds may be eligible for a waiver under §212 (h) if the failure to admit him to the U.S. would result in “extreme hardship” to his LPR or USC spouse, parent (s), son (s) or daughter (s).
Cancellation of Removal for lawful permanent residents enables green card holders to avoid deportation and remain in the US.
Once an illegal alien has been found qualified for legalization or “ amnesty ” by the USCIS, the deportation hearing will typically be closed since the alien will have attained the legal right to remain in the United States.
Cancellation of removal for non-lawful permanent residents is a defense to deportation, and a pathway to a green card for people who are in removal (deportation) proceedings.
Similarly, a person who is inadmissible on certain criminal grounds may be eligible for a waiver under §212 (h) if the failure to admit him to the U.S. would result in “extreme hardship” to his LPR or USC spouse, parent (s), son (s) or daughter (s).