For those apprehended at entry, arriving immigrants have one daunting opportunity to express a fear of return to their home country before facing deportation, often without any representation or preparation. In this webinar, we will examine the process of credible fear for asylum applicants classed as arriving aliens and distinguish this from the reasonable fear process. We will unpack this confusing process and address the legal standard and practical implications.
Presenters:
Erin Quinn, ILRC Staff Attorney
Erin Quinn has been an immigration defense attorney for over 10 years and holds a joint degree in law and public policy (JD/MPP) from the University of Michigan. At the ILRC, Erin’s work focuses on building capacity of organizations and practitioners to assist immigrants. She conducts trainings and provides legal expertise on immigration law through ILRC’s Attorney of the Day program. In addition, Erin has contributed to numerous ILRC publications as author or editor, including Removal Defense: Defending Immigrants in Immigration Court; Essentials of Asylum and many others. Prior to coming to the ILRC, Erin represented immigrants in all aspects of their immigration matters, with an emphasis on removal defense and complex cases. She was owner and attorney at her own firm for 5 years after defending immigrants as an associate at the Law Office of Robert B. Jobe. Her experience in immigration law and policy includes working as a fellow for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, EU headquarters in Belgium; clerking for the Immigration Court of San Francisco; and teaching courses as a lecturer at CSU Eastbay. Originally from Fresno, California, Erin loves teaching, language and travel. She lived in Romania for over two years as a Peace Corps volunteer and worked in Hungary as a teacher trainer. In addition she has traveled, studied and taught in Central America, South Africa and Europe. Erin is on the Advisory Council for the Northern California Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), in which she serves as Pro Bono Coordinator and Liaison for Consumer Protection. She is a member of the California Bar.
Jacqueline Brown Scott , USF School of Law Immigration & Deportation Defense Clinic, Supervising Attorney & Assistant Professor
Jacqueline Brown Scott is an immigration attorney with experience solving a wide array of immigration issues pertaining to asylum, deportation defense, and family-based immigration. Jacqueline began her career in immigration law at the San Francisco Immigration Court as an attorney advisor through the Department of Justice Honors Program. There, she wrote hundreds of orders and written decisions for the Immigration Judges. When in working at her firm,Law Office of Jacqueline Brown Scott, she dedicated a significant part of her private practice to providing pro bono legal representation to individuals who are especially in need of legal services and unable to afford them. She has worked with the Board of Immigration Appeals Pro Bono Project, the National Center for Immigrant and Refugee Children, CLINIC’s National Pro Bono Project for Children, and the Community of East Palo Alto Legal Services. She received San Francisco Bar Association’s 2010 Barrister of the Year Award, as well as the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s 2011 Pro Bono Benefactor and 2010 and 2014 Pro Bono Champion Awards, and the California Bar Association’s Wiley W. Manual Award. She is also one of nine recipients of the California Bar Association’s 2011 President Services Awards for her pro bono work with immigrant children.