Immigrants’ Rights Clinic
Do you have questions about the Travel Ban or recent Executive Orders?
The Immigrants’ Rights Clinic has gathered additional resources for members of the Stanford and Bay Area communities.
Overview
Students in the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic have full responsibility for defending clients against deportation in San Francisco Immigration Court, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and the federal courts of appeals. As part of that work, students write complex legal briefs, argue cases, conduct fact investigation, interview witnesses and clients, and represent clients in mini-trials. Students also engage in cutting-edge litigation and advocacy in partnership with local and national immigrants’ rights organizations.
Latest Updates
Immigrants’ Rights Clinic Students Create Unique Guide for Pro Se Asylum Seekers
The Stanford Law School Immigrants’ Rights Clinic is pleased to announce the release of a new pro se asylum guide. The guide is the first of its kind to provide a step-by-step description of how one can represent themselves in their asylum removal proceedings before the San Francisco Immigration Court (the fourth largest immigration court in the country). The guide is interactive and participatory, explaining how pro se asylum seekers can take helpful and affirmative steps to prepare for their (non-detained) merits hearings.
The guide, created and written by law students under the supervision of Jayashri Srikantiah and Lisa Weissman-Ward, was produced on behalf of Centro Legal de la Raza (Oakland, CA) and Community Legal Services of East Palo Alto (East Palo Alto, CA).
read more Asylum Pro Se Guide – English Asylum Pro Se Guide – Spanish
The Experience of Representing a Client in an Asylum Case: A Student’s Perspective
I started working with E in the spring of 2016 as a full-time clinic student in the Immigrants’ Rights Clinic. E was a new client for the clinic who was in removal proceedings and seeking asylum to stay in the United States. In her home country, E had witnessed a brutal murder committed by a powerful gang and a corrupt police officer. She was targeted and severely harmed because she was a witness to the crime. Despite having been victimized, she bravely attempted to pursue justice, even knowing she could never be safe again in her home country.
Clinic students Matthew Sellers, (’17) and Andrew Chang, (’17) wrote and filed a brief on behalf of community organizations in support of Santa Clara County’s Motion for Preliminary Injunction against the President’s Executive Order to render “Sanctuary Jurisdictions” ineligible to receive federal funding.
read the brief
Collaborative and Supportive Supervision
We create a nurturing, reflective environment where students can learn from their experiences. Students develop their professional judgment and critical problem-solving skills as they learn key litigation and lawyering skills.
Learn More About Our Teaching
Lauren Tsuji, JD '14
"Clinic helped me develop skills, experience, and confidence . . ."
Katie Austin, JD '13
"Clinic gave me tools to translate a client's interests into legal objectives . . ."
Chris Walker, JD '06
"The clinical experience helped me develop the legal and policy skills necessary to be an effective advocate . . ."
Clinic Director Jayashri Srikantiah Writes About Resistance and Immigrants' Rights In Our Current Political and Social Climate
“For many of us, Trump’s success in the election felt like a victory for his anti-immigrant, racist, and xenophobic rhetoric. How can we prepare and resist now and in the years to come? I do not have the answer. But as I have worried about the effects of Trump’s immigration policies on immigrant families and communities, I have been re-turning to a few principles […] I draw from the wisdom of leaders… and the example of the many activists who have forged a path forward in times of injustice. I have also learned from conversations with colleagues, friends, and students as we plan for immigrants’ rights advocacy in the Trump years.”
Read the Full Article
IRC Featured on MLC Blog
Immigrants’ Rights Clinic Students Create Unique Guide for Pro Se Asylum Seekers
Throughout law school, I have been repeatedly taught that it is the duty of a lawyer to be a zealous advocate for his or her clients. But how does a lawyer teach individuals to be zealous advocates for themselves? This was a question that my advocacy project team in the…
Read MoreThe Experience of Representing a Client in an Asylum Case: A Student's Perspective
Immigrants' Rights Clinic Students Continue Work as Alumni to Win Deportation Case in San Francisco Immigration Court
Immigrants' Rights Clinic Students Excited to See Spring Asylum Case to Completion as Advanced Students
Immigrants' Rights Clinic Wins Important Asylum Victory in Immigration Court
Immigrants' Rights Clinic Files Lawsuit to Uncover Federal Government Policies on Deportation Procedures for Recent Central American Refugees
IRC Wins Asylum on Behalf of Central American Refugee
In the News
Trump Administration Defends Implementation Of Travel Ban
San Francisco Chronicle
President Trump’s administration is not allowing grandparents, grandchildren, uncles or aunts of U.S. residents from nations affected by Trump’s travel ban to enter the country because they are not considered “close family members” under immigration law, government lawyers told a federal judge Monday. The Justice Department attorneys also defended the…
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