Asylum and Its Discontents in the United States
When asylum seekers arrive in the United States, they are often unfamiliar with how to file for asylum and how to find help with their cases. Such people commonly hire “consultants” (or “notarios” in the Spanish-speaking community) to assist them. The consultants prepare the case and sometimes attend the asylum interview as an interpreter. They charge a … Read more
Asylum in the United States is meant to be a confidential process. However, it is not uncommon for the BIA and the federal circuit courts to identify asylum seekers by name in their decisions, and to describe the applicants’ claims of persecution. We lawyers sometimes wonder whether anyone in the home country ever learns about … Read more
From Human Rights First: After conducting a comprehensive review of the U.S. immigration adjudication system, the American Bar Association (ABA) Commission on Immigration released is long-anticipated report, “Reforming the Immigration System: Proposals to Promote Independence, Fairness, Efficiency and Professionalism in the Adjudication of Removal Cases.” The study found that pressures on the adjudication system have … Read more
The U.S. State Department Country Reports on Human Rights Practices were released today. Secretary of State Clinton described the purpose of the report: These reports are an essential tool—for activists who courageously struggle to protect rights in communities around the world; for journalists and scholars who document rights violations and who report on the work … Read more
Mesfin (not his real name) fled Ethiopia to escape political persecution. Once he reached the United States, he filed for political asylum. Four years, four attorneys, and thousands of dollars later, Mesfin’s journey finally came to an end when an Immigration Judge granted his application for asylum earlier this week. “When [my claim] was denied … Read more
Among lawyers (like me) who practice in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, there has been ongoing speculation about whether the conservative court is moving to the left. AILA’s Immigration Slip Opinions discusses several positive asylum decisions from the last few months, including my case, Baharon v. Holder, 588 F.3d 228 (4th Cir. … Read more