News

Legal Aid Society Seeking Pro Bono Attorneys for Deferred Action Clinics

  • 7/26/2012
  • The Legal Aid Society
  • Source: New York

On June 15th the Federal Government announced that it would provide Deferred Action and Employment Authorization (work permit) to qualified young people who were brought to the United States as children and have no lawful status. The Department of Homeland Security will be publishing procedures shortly and we anticipate thousands of qualified low-income New Yorkers will require legal assistance. To meet this need, The Legal Aid Society's Immigration Law Unit will be hosting application assistance clinics beginning August 13th at the Society's Brooklyn Neighborhood Civil office located at 111 Livingston Street. The clinics will be scheduled on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday throughout August. We also plan to establish a Hotline to maximize the Society's efforts to reach as many eligible young people as possible.

As our pro bono partners, we are reaching out to you to work with The Legal Aid Society to enable New York City's young immigrants achieve temporary status and economic independence. Please encourage your attorneys and legal assistants to sign up for a clinic, either a full or half day session, to interview applicants and assist them with the required benefit applications. All volunteers will be supervised by experienced immigration attorneys who will be present at the clinic. A one-hour orientation/training session will be held prior to the start of the clinic in addition to a webinar training.

Pro bono assistance also is needed to staff the hotline that will provide information on basic eligibility, the filing of applications, and refer callers who need application assistance to the Society’s clinic. Hotline volunteers can be available for either a half or full day. There is a particular need for Spanish, French, and Chinese speakers to complement English speaking hotline volunteers.

We look forward to working with you and your colleagues to ensure that qualified applicants receive high quality comprehensive legal assistance. Please contact the Pro Bono Administrator, Emily Bormann, at (212) 577-3919 or eabormann@legal-aid.org to sign up to staff the hotline or clinic.

Topics:
  • Children
  • Employment Authorization