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.
02/28/2011
Matter of Alyazji , 25 I&N Dec. 397 (BIA 2011), overruling in part Matter of Shanu , 23 I&N Dec. 754 (BIA 2005).
02/09/2011
Advocacy Guide Training This Congressional and Media Advocacy Guide training packet, available in English and Spanish, is designed to facilitate immigrants working effectively with Members of Congress and reporters. The packet includes information on the following areas: Ten steps for successful advocacy How a bill becomes a law How to meet with Members of Congress How to effectively talk about...
12/09/2010
The DREAM Act is proposed federal legislation that would help thousands of hard-working students realize their dreams of legalizing their immigration status. Specifically, the DREAM Act would provide legal status and access to financial aid to those young people who have graduated from a high school in the United States or received a GED, entered the United States before they were 16 years of age...
12/06/2010
by ILRC Staff Attorneys, 1996 This manual focuses on how agencies can participate in the INS "Off-Site" processing program where INS conducts naturalization interviews at community agencies. The experience of organizations in off-site efforts show that this approach increases convenience and reduces anxiety for naturalization applicants enabling them to achieve greater success. The manual offers...
12/06/2010
This report is an introductory narrative of how Proyecto Campesino and O.L.A. Raza conduct community organizing, rural leadership development, and civic participation campaigns using radio programs, naturalization assistance, citizenship classes, and civic action leagues comprised of immigrant membership. Farmworker organizations can duplicate and adapt some of the information and organizing...
12/06/2010
Written by Doug DiSalvo East Bay Citizenship Network May 1999 This guide explains which documents are frequently required of naturalization applicants, in what circumstances they are required, and how to get them. It contains simple explanations of each type of document, and sample forms and letters applicants can use to get them. Obtaining documents that will probably be required, and taking...
12/02/2010
ILRC Technical Assistance The Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) provides assistance to agencies helping immigrants defrauded by immigration consultants. California Business and Profession Code § 22440 et seq. requires that anyone other than a lawyer preparing immigration forms: Post a $50,000 bond and provide all clients with written statement containing the consultant's name, address,...
11/30/2010
11/30/2010
Developing leadership skills among immigrant and refugee communities is more important now than ever. Since the attacks of September 11, 2001, there has been a widely reported increase in the hostilities, violence and discrimination against immigrant and refugee communities. Immigrant leaders, with the proper skills and tools, can help the community understand its rights, develop strategies for...
11/30/2010
The central focus of the curriculum is to help immigrants develop and refine their leadership and advocacy skills, and to teach them how to help others apply for citizenship. Using interactive teaching techniques, the curriculum is designed to give every student an opportunity to practice the skills taught during the training. Divided into 11 training units, the curriculum takes approximately 31...
11/30/2010
To read the monograph detailing the ILRC's work on social change lawyering, please download the following file:
11/30/2010
11/19/2010
11/19/2010
This model code was written as a collaboration between our staff and accredited representatives around the country. It was inspired, in part, by the complaint heard occasionally (mostly from attorneys) that, while attorneys have a code of ethics to which they are bound, accredited representatives have no such code.
11/19/2010
A description of critical resources available for California criminal defenders defending noncitizens:
11/19/2010
Practice advisory by Katherine Brady on the Supreme Court case Nijhawan v. Holder, which deals with the categorical approach and aggravated felonies.
11/19/2010
Immigration Benchbook for Juvenile and Family Courts, Updated July 2010 (PDF, 2010) This is a national benchbook for juvenile and family court judges on various immigration related issues including: Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, adoption, VAWA, U Visas, divorce, child custody, immigration consequences of delinquency and crime, and immigration enforcement.
11/19/2010
This guide is designed to walk you through the document-gathering requirements under the 1994 Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and its more recent revisions and updates. Though not a comprehensive explanation of the law or its requirements, it is instead a user-friendly resource to gathering the necesary documents for a VAWA self-petition.