Some U visa applicants may be eligible for a 4 year EAD, based on news released by USCIS on June 14th. Check out our info sheet below in English or Spanish for more information. 
Category: News
ACLU Wins Fight in FOIA Case
Our firm has been working alongside the ACLU to fight against ICE’s practice of withholding a foreign national’s records because the government deemed them a “fugitive.” This practice limited the advice attorneys could give their clients because records were withheld. The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requires federal agencies to provide responsive documents to any person who requests them. Their “fugitive” practice violated established law and a federal district court just agreed with us. You can see the press release from the ACLU by clicking here.
Sandra’s Story
As many of your know, we have been fighting the removal of a client, who is now in sanctuary at a local church property. Western Slope Now just did another story on her, which appeared in the local evening news. You can see it here.
Immigration Only Attorneys
The Wall Street Journal recently published an article about immigration attorneys and ethical violations. The basics of the article imply that attorneys who practice immigration law, along with many other types of law are more likely to have ethical complaints against them. On the flip side, attorneys who SOLELY practice immigration law are more likely to abide by the ethical obligations of the law. Immigration is a complex legal system, one which requires in depth knowledge about many facets of the system. We are proud to say we are immigration only practitioners. We strive to know every nuance of the complex laws and how to navigate them. We give honest answers and return unearned fees. You can read the WSJ article here, if you’re a WSJ subscriber, or you can read an American Bar Association article here that presents many of the same points. Know who you are hiring and do your research when hiring an attorney.
MA Ruling on Detainers
A Massachusetts high court ruled recently that local authorities have no legal standing to honor ICE detainers. This is a win for the immigrant community in that state. We hope other states follow suit soon. You can read more here.
Immigration Justice Campaign
AILA has launched a new initiative to prepare more lawyers to defend immigrants facing deportation. You can read their press release regarding it here.
Ski Industry wants more H-2B visas
Did you see the article in the Denver Post about the ski industry supporting an increase in H-2B visas? With record low unemployment numbers in Colorado they are scrambling to find workers. Check out the article here.
PI Letter to the Editor
Our attorney, Jennifer Smith, wrote a letter to the editor of the Post Independent recently. In it, she thanked local law enforcement for refusing to do the work of the federal government relating to immigration and she encouraged legislative action to reform our immigration policies. Remember, separated families are not limited to a particular religion, culture or political party.
You can read the LTE in full here.
Aspen Daily News article
Check out the article in today’s Aspen Daily News regarding fear in the immigrant community. Jennifer was a big contributor to the story. You can find the full article here.
Sanctuary City Funding Update
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued a nationwide injunction against Section 9(a) of Executive Order 13768, which blocks so-called “sanctuary jurisdictions” from receiving federal grant money. The court concluded that the counties of San Francisco and Santa Clara demonstrated that they are likely to succeed on the merits of their challenge to Section 9(a) of the Executive Order, that they will suffer irreparable harm absent an injunction, and that the balance of harms and public interest weigh in their favor.
Read more here.