Information for Pro Bono Attorneys

Trainings for Pro Bono Attorneys

To learn about NIJC's upcoming trainings for pro bono attorneys, please call (312) 660-1370. You must attend a training before representing a client through NIJC.

WEBCASTS OF TRAININGS (via Illinois Pro Bono)

Older trainings also available at www.illinoisprobono.org

Representing Asylum Seekers (includes Ken Madsen, Director of the Chicago Asylum Office, and David Berten, Competition Law Group and founder of www.asylumlaw.org), 01/24/2006
Representing Immigrant Survivors of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (includes Michael Guerra, Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal, and Neha Gill of Apna Ghar), 06/12/2006
Representing Asylum Seekers (includes Judge Robert Vinikoor, Immigration Judge for the Chicago Immigration Court), 07/06/2006
Immigration Overview for Non-Immigration Attorneys (includes Leah Duckett, Law Offices of R.D. Ahlgren & Associates, P.C. , and James Morsch, Butler, Rubin, Saltarelli & Boyd), 10/20/2006
Representing Asylum Seekers (includes Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois; Greg Guckenberger, Supervisory Asylum Office of the Chicago Asylum Office; and Larry Schaner, Jenner & Block), 11/03/2006
Representing Asylum Seekers and Children Seeking SIJ Status (includes David Berten, Competition Law Group and founder of www.asylumlaw.org), 03/01/2007

Manuals for Pro Bono Attorneys

NIJC has produced training manuals for pro bono attorneys working on a variety of immigration cases. Electronic versions of NIJC's manuals on representing immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers before the Immigration Court and federal courts are available below.

NIJC has also created two manuals for attorneys representing unaccompanied immigrant children who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected and and are eligible for the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) Visa, as well as immigrant survivors of domestic violence eligible for relief under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), also available below. All NIJC manuals are designed to supplement, not replace, our training program for pro bono attorneys.

Basic Procedural Manual for Asylum Representation Affirmatively and in Removal Proceedings (updated November 2006)

Download entire manual with appendices

Introduction and Table of Contents

A. Asylum Application

1. Application Form (Form I-589)

2. Filing checklist

B. Notices of Appearance as Attorney

1. Form G-28 for Affirmative Cases

2. Form EOIR-28 for Defensive Cases

3. Form EOIR-27 for BIA Cases

C. Request to Review Record

D. Fingerprint Request Forms

1. Applications Filed Before April 1, 2005

2. Applications Filed On or After April 1, 2005

E. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Request

1. Cover Letter

2. FOIA Request Form (Form G-639)

F. Employment Authorization Application

1. Cover Letter

2. Application (Form I-765)

3. Employment Authorization Checklist

G. Change of Address Forms

1. For the Immigration Court (EOIR-33-IC)

2. For the BIA (EOIR-33-BIA)

3. For DHS (AR-11)

H. Notice of Appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals (Form E-26)

I. Notice to Appear

J. Sample Cover Letter to Asylum Office

K. Sample Brief / Trial Memorandum

L. Sample Index of Exhibits

M. Sample Client Affidavits

N. Sample Expert Affidavit

O. Sample Psychologist Affidavit

P. Translation Templates

Q. Certificate of Translation

R. Certificate of Service

S. Motion for Telephonic Testimony

T. Local Operating Procedures

U. Using asylumlaw.org in Your Asylum Case

V. Guidelines for Working With Interpreters

W. Guidelines for Cases Involving Unaccompanied Immigrant Children

X. Asylee/Refugee Relative Petition

1. Cover Letter

2. Table of Contents

3. Asylee/Refugee Relative Petition Form (Form I-730)

4. Petition Filing Checklist

Y. Other Information for Asylees

1. Benefits Information for Client

2. Post-Order Instructions for Asylees

Z. Referral Form for Heartland Alliance's International Refugee Center in Chicago

Basic Procedural Manual for Asylum Representation Before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (updated February 2006)

Introduction and Table of Contents

A. Sample BIA Summary Affirmance

B. 8 USC § 1252

C. Sample Petition for Review

D. Affidavit Accompanying Motion for Permission to Appeal in Forma Pauperis

E. Sample Bag and Baggage Letter

F. Application for Stay of Removal (DHS I-246)

G. Sample Letter In Support of I-246

H. Sample Letter Supplementing I-246 Application

I. Fee Waiver Instructions

J. Sample DHS Response to I-246

K. Motion to Stay Removal Pending Petition for Review

L. Brief Filing Checklist

M. Summary of Recent Seventh Circuit Opinions

N. American Immigration Law Foundation Practice Advisory: "How to File a

Petition for Review"

O. American Immigration Law Foundation Practice Advisory

1. "Protecting Voluntary Departure Period During Court of Appeals Review"

2. "Update on BIA Affirmance Without Opinion Litigation"

P. Flow Chart: "Seeking a Stay of Removal"

Winning Asylum, Withholding and CAT Cases Based on Sexual Orientation, Transgender Identity and/or HIV-Positive Status (updated June 2006)

Download entire manual with appendices

VAWA/Gender Justice Initiative: Legal Immigration Protections for Immigrant Survivors of Domestic Violence and Other Forms of Gender Motivated Violence (updated January 2007)

Download entire manual with appendices

Special Immigrant Juvenile Status in Illinois: A Guide for Pro Bono Attorneys (updated May 2006)

Introduction and Table of Contents

Federal Law

A. Code of Federal Regulation, Titile 8

B. 8 U.S.C, 1101(a)(27)(J)

C. Section 212 on Admission

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Guidelines and Memoranda

D. DHS Memo# 3

E. USCIS Memo on Fee Waiver

State Law

F. Illinois Juvenile Court Act