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    Pro Bono Success Stories

    2024 Pro Bono Honor Roll

    During Pro Bono Week, the Commission on Immigration (COI) is proud to recognize our 2024 Pro Bono Champions: volunteers who worked on pro bono projects with COI, ProBAR, the Immigration Justice Project (IJP) or the Children’s Immigration Law Academy (CILA) during the past year. Pro Bono Week is a time to celebrate volunteers who have dedicated their time and expertise to helping some of the most vulnerable members of our community. Pro bono assistance is essential to upholding the due process rights of migrants and asylum-seekers, especially in the light of the complexities and challenges of the evolving immigration legal landscape. We are grateful to the volunteers who have provided life-changing support to our clients this year.

    Check out this year's Champions - HERE

    2023 Pro Bono Honor Roll

    In honor of Pro Bono Week, the ABA Commission on Immigration extends gratitude to those who have contributed to pro bono programs within the Commission, ProBAR, the Children’s Immigration Law Academy (CILA), and the Immigration Justice Project (IJP). Pro bono work is crucial to upholding due process rights for immigrants. Thank you for donating your time and skills to make a difference.

    See the list - here

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    Federal Free Legal Answers: "The Answers Attorneys Provide Make an Enormous Difference for Asylum-seekers and Immigrants Who Otherwise May Lack the Resources to Find an Attorney."

    Santiago Palacios, Senior Paralegal at the Commission on Immigration, explains how easy it is to get involved with Federal Free Legal Answers (Federal FLA) and the big impact it makes on the clients that the program serves.

    Complete Story - Here
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    Opening a Door to Liberty and Opportunities: A Spotlight on Translation Volunteer Bartolome Canellas

    ProBAR highlights one of their fabulous remote translators. Bartolome Canellas, a native of Puerto Rico and bilingual in Spanish and English, retired in 2020 after a career in engineering, and now has volunteer more than 230 hours during 2022 alone.

    Full Story - Here
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    “I Don’t Want to Speak for [Clients], I Want Them to Be Heard.” A Spotlight on Interpreter Volunteer Kely Martell

    The ABA Commission on Immigration (COI) showcases the story of Kely Martell, a native Spanish-speaker, that came to the United States at age 13 from Lima, Peru and learned English within six months. Kely is now a paralegal who has worked as a volunteer Spanish interpreter and translator for over a year and a half with the Immigration Justice Project (IJP).

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    Transactional Attorneys Participate in Legal Clinic to Launch Representation of Afghan Pro Se+ Clients: “We want to give [our clients] more opportunities to be at peace.”

    The ABA Commission on Immigration (COI) is grateful to pro bono attorneys from Chapman and Cutler LLP (Chapman), Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and BMO Harris who participated in a day-long virtual legal clinic to assist Afghan asylum-seekers.

    Read - Here
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    “Today, I am Happy Because I am Free.”

    The ABA Commission on Immigration extends thanks and congratulations to the teams at the Asylum and Convention Against Torture Appellate Clinic at Cornell Law School and the ABA’s South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project (ProBAR), who recently obtained asylum for their client in his case before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).

    Read - Here
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    Federal Free Legal Answers can Make the Difference between Groceries for a Month or Advice to Obtain a Green Card: “I Don’t Think Anyone Should Have to Make that Choice”

    The ABA Commission on Immigration extends deep gratitude to Dahlia French, an immigration attorney who has answered over 100 questions for low-income individuals seeking immigration advice on the ABA Federal Free Legal Answers website.

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    “Alok Kumar has become much more than my attorney - he is my guardian angel.”

    Mr. Hernandez had been detained at the Imperial Regional Detention Center for almost one year when he was connected with a pro bono attorney through the ABA Immigration Justice Project. He had full custody of his seventeen-, fifteen-, and eight-year-old children, who are U.S. Citizens, and when he was detained, they were placed in government care through Child Protective Services. Find out what happens in this impactful story.

    Read - Here

    Securing Family Unity: The Power of Zealous Pro Bono Representation

    In October 2021, a pro bono team from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP received notice that the Board of Immigration Appeals upheld an Immigration Judge’s grant of cancellation of removal, ending their client’s nearly three-year fight to avoid deportation and separation from his family. Their win highlights the incredible impact that pro bono attorneys can make for clients – whatever the form of relief they seek and at every stage of their case.

    Read - Here

    2021 Pro Bono Honor Roll

    In honor of Pro Bono Week, the ABA Commission on Immigration extends gratitude to those who have contributed to our pro bono programs. Pro bono work is crucial to upholding due process rights for immigrants. Thank you for using your skills to make a difference.

    Read - Here

    Stories of Pro Bono Success

    Pro Bono Opportunities

    Kindly complete this survey at your earliest convenience to receive information about volunteer opportunities with the ABA Commission on Immigration and its projects.

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    About the YTL

    Experience is the magazine of the ABA Senior Lawyers Division. Our audiences are older attorneysspecializing in any area of the law, as well as elder law practitioners of any age. Our articles focus on elder law, broadly defined. We also publish articles on other topics of interest, including those related to politics, history, culture, travel, and the arts.

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