Areas of Expertise

The Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) immigration attorneys’ expertise focuses on family-based immigration, humanitarian relief, naturalization and citizenship, immigration enforcement, and removal defense.

Since 1979 we have helped expand the immigration expertise of attorneys, nonprofit staff, criminal defenders, and others assisting immigrant clients.

In addition to authoring the ILRC’s practice manuals, our expert attorneys have been published by Continuing Education of the Bar (CEB), American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), ILW.com, Huffington Post, Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, Center for Law and Social Policy, The Hill, LexisNexis Emerging Issues, and Fox News Latino.
 
We have also provided training to National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), American Bar Association Commission on Immigration, Federal Bar Association, The State Bar of California, Legal Aid Association of California, Judicial Council of California and more.

ILRC Policy Priorities
Policy Advocacy
The Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) builds a democratic society that values diversity and the rights of all people. Through ILRC’s policy and advocacy efforts, we promote a vision of racial justice that advances the rights of all immigrants, including those who have had contact with the criminal legal system.

Community Alert: New Immigration Relief for Liberians (LRIF)
Family-Based
Policy Advocacy
Removal Defense
Enacted on December 20, 2019, the Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness (LIRF) act began a program that will allow many Liberians living in the United States to apply for permanent residence. The statute originally had a one-year application window that ended on December 20, 2020, but Congress extended the application period another year to December 20, 2021 in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021.

Family-Based Petitions for LGBTQ Couples: Considerations When Documenting a Bona Fide Marriage
Family-Based
LGBT
Since 2015, the process of immigrating to the United States as the spouse of a USC or an LPR should not be any different for an LGBTQ couple than any other couple. However, advocates working with LGBTQ couples may need to consider a variety of factors when documenting and providing representation for an LGBTQ marriage-based petition. For example, is the couple currently living a jurisdiction where they can lawfully marry? And, if not, what other options does a couple have? And how might a marriage-based petition packet look if the couple has not shared their marriage or LGBTQ identity with one or both of their families? This advisory will address the first step of the marriage-based immigration process for same-sex married couples: submitting evidence of a bona fide marriage. It will also discuss red flags to address when preparing such applications and strategies for preventing fraud accusations by USCIS.

As Public Charge Rule Allowed to Take Effect, Congress Must Act Now to Protect Immigrant Communities, Says Immigrant Legal Resource Center

For Immediate Release: January 27, 2020
Contact: Marie McIntosh, media@ilrc.org

As Public Charge Rule Allowed to Take Effect, Congress Must Act Now to Protect Immigrant Communities, Says Immigrant Legal Resource Center

Open Records Laws for Immigrant Rights Advocates
Community Resources
Enforcement
This toolkit and webinar from ILRC, CLINIC, and the Center for Constitutional Rights provide and introduction and advice for how immigrant rights advocates can use public records act requests to get information on how immigrants are treated by local and state government agencies.  These requests can be an essential part of campaigns to protect immigrant communities.

Immigrant Legal Resource Center Condemns Trump’s Expansion of Muslim Ban

 Immigrant Legal Resource Center Condemns Trump’s Expansion of Muslim Ban  

Today, the Trump administration announced the expansion of its Muslim Ban to include six additional countries. Under the new policy, restrictions will be expanded to immigrants from Nigeria, Eritrea, Myanmar, Kyrgyzstan, Sudan, and Tanzania.

Said Sameera Hafiz, Policy Director for the Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC):

RECORDING - Late-Breaking Public Charge Update
Public Charge
This one-hour training, recorded on February 4, 2020, provides updates on what the U.S. Supreme Court's January 27, 2020 order regarding the Department of Homeland Security's new public charge inadmissibility rule means for our clients and the immigrant community. We also discuss what we know and what questions remain at this juncture, suggestions for how to talk about this latest development regarding public charge, and initial thoughts about how to approach adjustment of status cases in light of these changes. Adjustment cases filed with USCIS before February 24, 2020 will be decided based on old criteria in effect before the new rule.

ILRC: New Ruling Allowing Child Asylum Seekers to Challenge Return to Mexico While Awaiting Court Hearings Vital to Protecting Thousands of Immigrant Youth

For Immediate Release: February 14, 2020
Contact: Arianna Rosales, media@ilrc.org

ILRC: New Ruling Allowing Child Asylum Seekers to Challenge Return to Mexico While Awaiting Court Hearings Vital to Protecting Thousands of Immigrant Youth 

ICE Courthouse Arrests in California: Explainer and Legal Strategies Tool for Legal Services Providers and Defenders
Crimes
Enforcement
In response to recent ICE enforcement practices, noncitizens who need to attend state and local courts in California may express fear of civil arrest if they attend court. This two-page tool, written for defenders and legal services providers, presents California-specific strategies for representing and advising noncitizens who may require additional procedural protections for their right to attend court. It includes discussion of recent California laws and how they affect daily court practice, as well as recommendations for documenting unlawful civil arrests and for empowering communities to exercise their rights if confronted by ICE.

Unaccompanied Children and the One-Year Filing Deadline
Asylum
Immigrant Youth
Although the TVPRA exempts unaccompanied children (UCs) from the one-year filing deadline for asylum, the current administration has been attempting to erode these protections. As a result, many UCs are at risk of losing their statutory protections and being subjected to the one-year filing deadline. This practice advisory provides UC advocates with an overview of the deadline, the exceptions for changed and extraordinary circumstances, and specific tips on satisfying this requirement in UC cases.

Understanding I-212s for Inadmissibility Related to Prior Removal Orders and the Permanent Bar
Family-Based
Removal Defense
This advisory seeks to clarify when, where, and how to file an I-212. It also discusses certain special circumstances such as conditional I-212s, nunc pro tunc I-212s, and how a grant to TPS or advance parole may affect the need for an I-212. The advisory addresses strategic concerns such as deciding when to file a motion to reopen versus a conditional I-212, and assessing the risks of triggering other inadmissibility or enforcement issues when advising clients.

What Are the Immigration Consequences of Delinquency?
Crimes
Immigrant Youth
This advisory provides an overview of the immigration consequences of delinquency and helps advocates understand the distinctions between delinquency and crime to be able to assess whether a youth has committed an act of delinquency or a crime. It arms advocates with arguments to protect their noncitizen clients who have engaged in unlawful conduct as minors.

Motions with the BIA
Removal Defense
This advisory provides an overview of the most common types of motions filed with the Board of Immigration Appeals. It discusses the types of motions the Board will accept while proceedings are pending before it, such as motions to remand. It also discusses motions filed with the Board after it has issued a final order of removal, which includes motions to reconsider and motions to reopen. It contains guidelines on determining what type of motion is appropriate in specific circumstances and how to prepare and file motions in a way that meets legal requirements and complies with the Board’s procedural rules.

Comment on Proposed Revisions to USCIS Form I-290B
U Visa/T Visa/VAWA
The American Immigration Council, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, ASISTA Immigration Assistance, the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, Kids in Need of Defense, and the Tahirih Justice Center submitted this comment in response to the proposed revisions to USCIS Form I-290B, which were published in the Federal Register on December 6, 2019.