Immigration
Brooklyn Defenders' Immigration Practice protects the rights of immigrant New Yorkers by defending against ICE detention and deportation, minimizing the negative immigration consequences of criminal and family charges for non-citizens and representing immigrants in applications for immigration benefits.
Our immigration practice represents people who are applying for immigration relief, including asylum, before U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”), and in removal proceedings in New York’s immigration courts. We are one of three New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP) providers, which specializes in representing people who are detained while they await their deportation hearing.
Our specialized team of attorneys also provides assessments and advice to defense attorneys across Brooklyn Defenders and all our clients about the specific impact of their legal case on their immigration status.
Units & Projects
Federal Litigation & Civil Rights
Our Immigration Practice has a highly successful in-house federal court practice, where we have litigated dozens of cases in U.S. federal courts, including habeas, mandamus, class action and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) claims, as well as Petitions for Review before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
Immigrant Community Action Project (ICAP)
Our ICAP attorneys, BIA-accredited representatives, social workers, and support staff represent people in non-detained removal proceedings and applications for immigration benefits, including family-based applications for lawful permanent status, fear-based applications, U & T visas, Special Juvenile Immigrant Status (SIJS), DACA renewal and other related immigration applications.
New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP)
Our NYIFUP program is New York City's first-in-the-nation publicly funded universal representation program for detained noncitizens facing deportation. Our NYIFUP attorneys defend people facing deportation in removal proceedings, in both merits and immigration detention custody hearings before the immigration court and Board of Immigration Appeal (“BIA”).
Immigration Staff
Our team of attorneys, paralegals, social workers, and other specialists provide a broad range of immigration representation, advocacy and support.
Over the past 20 years,
80%
of people who received deportation orders did not have legal representation.
and
93%
of people granted relief from deportation have had legal representation.