Our office will close for the holidays on December 16, 2011 and will reopen on January 2, 2012. Clients and prospective clients may contact us by leaving a message at our (714)441-3400 number, or by e-mailing us at chowhamilton@gmail.com. We will likely only respond to emergencies of existing clients during our vacation, but will promptly respond to all contacts upon our return in January.
We wish you all well for the season and especially thank our clients who have sent us warm holiday and thank-you cards, or have told friends and associates about us this year.
Happy holidays and a prosperous new year to all.
By: Duane M. Hamilton
Thursday, December 15, 2011
CHOW & HAMILTON YEAR-END REPORT
Today was to be my last immigration trial of 2011, but the case was continued to next year, due to illness of the prosecutor. We are happy however to announce the following:
* We succeeded in winning immigration relief which would place our clients on a pathway to US Citizenship (such as asylum), in every completed immigration trial in 2011;
* We received Asylum Office grants in several Kenyan asylum cases (though we take our more complex asylum matters - those filed more than one year after the alien's arrival in the US, and where the alien is failing to maintain status - directly to Immigration Court these days, bypassing the Asylum Office);
* All of our adjustment of status interviews in 2011 based upon marriage were approved with an award of lawful permanent residence to our clients;
* We won terminations of Removal Proceedings in several cases in which our clients were wrongfully being prosecuted for deportation, and secured re-adjustment of status in one complex criminal related matter in which deportation was sought against our Lawful Permanent Resident client based upon the Government's allegation that our client had been convicted of certain Crimes Involvoing Moral Turpitude (CIMTs);
* We were able to reopen two incredibly difficult cases in which deportation orders and Federal Warrants of Deportation had long been issued and all appellate time frames for our clients to appeal had apparently expired under the representation of prior counsel;
* Mr. Chow has succeeded in receiving critical discovery in our Hemet CALDOJ shooting case, Abel v. State of California, and we are moving into 2012 well positioned for mediation, arbitration or trial of this important case.
* Mr. Chow and I have also made significant progress in other civil litigation matters, which are moving towards mediation, arbitration and/or trial, including, but not limited to several Family Law and Wrongful Termination matters.
To those we have served this year, we thank you for your business, and are heartened by the success we have had for you in those cases we were able to complete this year.
By: Duane M. Hamilton
* We succeeded in winning immigration relief which would place our clients on a pathway to US Citizenship (such as asylum), in every completed immigration trial in 2011;
* We received Asylum Office grants in several Kenyan asylum cases (though we take our more complex asylum matters - those filed more than one year after the alien's arrival in the US, and where the alien is failing to maintain status - directly to Immigration Court these days, bypassing the Asylum Office);
* All of our adjustment of status interviews in 2011 based upon marriage were approved with an award of lawful permanent residence to our clients;
* We won terminations of Removal Proceedings in several cases in which our clients were wrongfully being prosecuted for deportation, and secured re-adjustment of status in one complex criminal related matter in which deportation was sought against our Lawful Permanent Resident client based upon the Government's allegation that our client had been convicted of certain Crimes Involvoing Moral Turpitude (CIMTs);
* We were able to reopen two incredibly difficult cases in which deportation orders and Federal Warrants of Deportation had long been issued and all appellate time frames for our clients to appeal had apparently expired under the representation of prior counsel;
* Mr. Chow has succeeded in receiving critical discovery in our Hemet CALDOJ shooting case, Abel v. State of California, and we are moving into 2012 well positioned for mediation, arbitration or trial of this important case.
* Mr. Chow and I have also made significant progress in other civil litigation matters, which are moving towards mediation, arbitration and/or trial, including, but not limited to several Family Law and Wrongful Termination matters.
To those we have served this year, we thank you for your business, and are heartened by the success we have had for you in those cases we were able to complete this year.
By: Duane M. Hamilton
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
LOS ANGELES IMMIGRATION JUDGE GRANTS ANOTHER KENYAN C&H CLIENT ASYLUM
Mr. Hamilton successfully completed trial this morning, before Los Angeles Immigration Judge Rooyani, of another of our Kenyan clients' asylum claims (this one pending since early 2009). Upon approval of the asylum claim by the judge, the government's attorney waived appeal, hence the decision is now final. This judgment protects the applicant from any potential harm in Kenya and places such applicant on a pathway to U.S. Citizenship.
The Client and firm have expressed gratitude to the Government and Judge for this outcome. There is a great sense of relief and joy when individuals with so much at stake are afforded the protection of this great nation.
By: Maria Rangel
The Client and firm have expressed gratitude to the Government and Judge for this outcome. There is a great sense of relief and joy when individuals with so much at stake are afforded the protection of this great nation.
By: Maria Rangel
Thursday, October 27, 2011
LOS ANGELES IMMIGRATION JUDGES MEET TO DISCUSS PROSECUTORIAL DISCRETION
I am informed that Immigration Judges (IJs) of the Los Angeles Immigration Court, met this afternoon to discuss matters of "prosecutorial discretion," as envisioned in President Obama's August 18, 2011 announcement and in certain agency memoranda on the topic. See my article of August 22, 2011, entitled "WARNING! RECENT OBAMA ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT CONVEY IMMIGRATION STATUS."
The actual discussions and outcome of those discussions are unknown at this time. However, I am informed that judges of the San Diego Immigration Court are now allowing the alien's and Government's counsel to confer with respect to such discretion, and later advise the court as to the outcome of their discussions at a hearing for status.
This sort of prosecutorial discretion may allow a prioritization of cases which are in need of prosecution for deportation, and those which merit closure of "Removal Proceedings" given their "low priority" status. Criminal alien cases in my view, would likely be given the highest priority for removal, while non-criminal aliens who have established themselves in the U.S. over a long duration with strong ties to the U.S., might reasonably be thought to be in the lower priority range. However, it is impossible for me to know or even accurately predict the approach immigration prosecutors will actually take in these matters.
Further, termination of an Immigration Court Removal Proceedings, for aliens who do not have status, can be a double edged sword. On the one hand, the alien is no longer facing an impending deportation, with all of its adverse consequences and returns to his or her existence of living in the US as a person who is without status (it remains to be seen whether some process of employment authorization will be implemented for aliens who receive this prosecutorial discretion). On the other hand, the alien might be presenting arguable relief applications which can only be granted by the IJ while removal proceedings are ongoing.
Hence, a client who is presenting a worthy and approvable relief application to the IJ, will be faced with an incredibly significant and complex decision, if offered termination in an exercise of prosecutorial discretion.
By: Duane M. Hamilton
The actual discussions and outcome of those discussions are unknown at this time. However, I am informed that judges of the San Diego Immigration Court are now allowing the alien's and Government's counsel to confer with respect to such discretion, and later advise the court as to the outcome of their discussions at a hearing for status.
This sort of prosecutorial discretion may allow a prioritization of cases which are in need of prosecution for deportation, and those which merit closure of "Removal Proceedings" given their "low priority" status. Criminal alien cases in my view, would likely be given the highest priority for removal, while non-criminal aliens who have established themselves in the U.S. over a long duration with strong ties to the U.S., might reasonably be thought to be in the lower priority range. However, it is impossible for me to know or even accurately predict the approach immigration prosecutors will actually take in these matters.
Further, termination of an Immigration Court Removal Proceedings, for aliens who do not have status, can be a double edged sword. On the one hand, the alien is no longer facing an impending deportation, with all of its adverse consequences and returns to his or her existence of living in the US as a person who is without status (it remains to be seen whether some process of employment authorization will be implemented for aliens who receive this prosecutorial discretion). On the other hand, the alien might be presenting arguable relief applications which can only be granted by the IJ while removal proceedings are ongoing.
Hence, a client who is presenting a worthy and approvable relief application to the IJ, will be faced with an incredibly significant and complex decision, if offered termination in an exercise of prosecutorial discretion.
By: Duane M. Hamilton
HAMILTON ENDS 6 YEAR IMMIGRATION COURT AND APPELLATE BATTLE FOR ALIEN ACCUSED OF AND FACING DEPORTATION FOR CERTAIN SERIOUS CRIMES
On October 25, 2011, the Los Angeles Immigration Court, readjusted the status of a long-time lawful permanent resident accused of certain serious crimes (not classified as aggravated felonies) which would ordinarily have resulted in deportation. Hamilton assumed representation of the alien in 2005, from attorneys who had represented the alien since 2003 in the same matter.
The matter had previously been terminated (thrown out of court) by the Immigration Judge (IJ) at Mr. Hamilton's request; appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) by the Government; remanded back to the IJ by the BIA; again relentlessly attacked in court by Hamilton; and ultimately readjusted and terminated in the Court's recent order. The Government has humanely waived appeal and the alien's readjustment is final.
This means that the alien begins anew as a Lawful Permanent Resident, with all privileges which go along with that status.
Chow & Hamilton are gratified at this outcome, and thank all parties participating in this case.
By: Maria Rangel
The matter had previously been terminated (thrown out of court) by the Immigration Judge (IJ) at Mr. Hamilton's request; appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) by the Government; remanded back to the IJ by the BIA; again relentlessly attacked in court by Hamilton; and ultimately readjusted and terminated in the Court's recent order. The Government has humanely waived appeal and the alien's readjustment is final.
This means that the alien begins anew as a Lawful Permanent Resident, with all privileges which go along with that status.
Chow & Hamilton are gratified at this outcome, and thank all parties participating in this case.
By: Maria Rangel
Monday, August 22, 2011
WARNING! RECENT OBAMA ANNOUNCEMENT DOES NOT CONVEY IMMIGRATION STATUS
On Thursday, August 18, 2011, the Obama Administration made an announcement related to prioritizing its efforts against aliens facing removal (deportation). This announcement did not convey any sort of legal status to aliens, nor does it provide any mechanism to apply for status. The announcement pertains to whether cases deemed "low priority" will be prosecuted for deportation, and a prospective process by which those aliens whose whose cases are administritively closed by the immigration court as "low priority" cases, might apply for an employment authorization document (EAD).
DO NOT LISTEN TO OR BELIEVE ANY IMMIGRATION CONSULTANT, NOTARIO, OR NON-LAWYER WHO SUGGESTS, OR ATTEMPTS TO EXTRACT MONEY FROM YOU TO APPLY FOR AN EMPLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION UNDER THE OBAMA ANNOUNCEMENT, SINCE THERE IS NO MECHANISM AT THIS TIME, BY WHICH THAT CAN BE DONE. FURTHER, IT REMAINS EXTREMELY RISKY FOR AN UNDOCUMENTED OR OVERSTAYED ALIEN TO TURN THEMSELVES IN TO IMMIGRATION AUTHORITIES.
THOUGH SOME ALIENS CAN AND DO BENEFIT FROM BEING PLACED IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS TO PURSUE CERTAIN TYPES OF APPLICATIONS, SUCH PLACEMENT SHOULD ONLY BE UNDERTAKEN WITH THE GUIDANCE AND REPRESENTATION OF AN EXPERIENCED IMMIGRATION LAWYER.
The announcement does not provide any mechanism at present (beyond those already available by regulation) for an alien to apply for an employment authorization, and aliens who are pursuing existing cases in court for immigration status through asylum, cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, and other remedies, are seeking "status" in the US and a pathway (at least in the forms of relief mentioned) to Lawful Permanent Residence (LPR) and ultimately US Citizenship.
To the extent that an alien's Immigration Court "Removal" case is administratively closed and the alien granted an EAD through some future application process, Obama's announcement does not suggest that the alien would cease to be inadmissible for overstaying a visa or I-94 for example, and thus the alien overstay (overstayed for more than 6 months) would continue to risk being barred from re-admission to the United States if they depart.
The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) has published a consumer advisory and warning to the public to clarify what this announcement is and what it is not. Aliens should read this advisory for themselves, and if confused about anything therein, consult with and ask an experienced immigration lawyer to explain it to them. The consumer advisory can be found at http://chat.aila.org/content/default.aspx?docid=36705. I encourage all undocumented or overstayed aliens to read this advisory and consult with an immigration lawyer before taking any action with respect to the August 18 announcement.
Chow & Hamilton will not be answering questions by phone related to the announcement or the above advisory. Individuals seeking advice regarding this matter will be referred to the AILA Consumer Advisory, this blog posting, and should schedule appointments with a lawyer of the firm.
Exisiting clients of the firm will be advised as to how the announcement might affect their individual cases, on a case by case basis, as they continue to consult and prep with the firm.
DO NOT LISTEN TO OR BELIEVE ANY IMMIGRATION CONSULTANT, NOTARIO, OR NON-LAWYER WHO SUGGESTS, OR ATTEMPTS TO EXTRACT MONEY FROM YOU TO APPLY FOR AN EMPLOYMENT AUTHORIZATION UNDER THE OBAMA ANNOUNCEMENT, SINCE THERE IS NO MECHANISM AT THIS TIME, BY WHICH THAT CAN BE DONE. FURTHER, IT REMAINS EXTREMELY RISKY FOR AN UNDOCUMENTED OR OVERSTAYED ALIEN TO TURN THEMSELVES IN TO IMMIGRATION AUTHORITIES.
THOUGH SOME ALIENS CAN AND DO BENEFIT FROM BEING PLACED IN REMOVAL PROCEEDINGS TO PURSUE CERTAIN TYPES OF APPLICATIONS, SUCH PLACEMENT SHOULD ONLY BE UNDERTAKEN WITH THE GUIDANCE AND REPRESENTATION OF AN EXPERIENCED IMMIGRATION LAWYER.
The announcement does not provide any mechanism at present (beyond those already available by regulation) for an alien to apply for an employment authorization, and aliens who are pursuing existing cases in court for immigration status through asylum, cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, and other remedies, are seeking "status" in the US and a pathway (at least in the forms of relief mentioned) to Lawful Permanent Residence (LPR) and ultimately US Citizenship.
To the extent that an alien's Immigration Court "Removal" case is administratively closed and the alien granted an EAD through some future application process, Obama's announcement does not suggest that the alien would cease to be inadmissible for overstaying a visa or I-94 for example, and thus the alien overstay (overstayed for more than 6 months) would continue to risk being barred from re-admission to the United States if they depart.
The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) has published a consumer advisory and warning to the public to clarify what this announcement is and what it is not. Aliens should read this advisory for themselves, and if confused about anything therein, consult with and ask an experienced immigration lawyer to explain it to them. The consumer advisory can be found at http://chat.aila.org/content/default.aspx?docid=36705. I encourage all undocumented or overstayed aliens to read this advisory and consult with an immigration lawyer before taking any action with respect to the August 18 announcement.
Chow & Hamilton will not be answering questions by phone related to the announcement or the above advisory. Individuals seeking advice regarding this matter will be referred to the AILA Consumer Advisory, this blog posting, and should schedule appointments with a lawyer of the firm.
Exisiting clients of the firm will be advised as to how the announcement might affect their individual cases, on a case by case basis, as they continue to consult and prep with the firm.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
HAMILTON WINS REOPENING FOR LONG-TIME KENYAN DEPORTEE
On August 9, 2011, the BIA, in response to Mr. Hamilton's Motion to Reopen (MTR) filed in May 2011, reopened the case of Kenyan alien who had been the subject of a final deportation issued in 2003. The case involved a number intersecting thorny and complex legal issues, including changes in law in the United States.
The alien is now permitted to reapply for immigration benefits which had been previously denied, and seek any other remedies which may be available.
By: Maria Rangel
The alien is now permitted to reapply for immigration benefits which had been previously denied, and seek any other remedies which may be available.
By: Maria Rangel
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