New Hurdles for Asylum Seekers
Recently, the Trump administration and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed new regulations that makes matters more challenging for asylum seekers. The document is open for public comment until July 15, 2020. The Trump administration must consider all comments before finalizing. Legal challenges to these rules are also expected. The proposed rules are designed […]
» Read More...July 9, 2020
COVID-19 Concerns Among Immigration Orders
Legal immigration into the United States has become even more difficult due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 has exacerbated issues while the government attempts to stop legal immigration by separating parents from children and rolling out new testing guidelines. It helps to understand how immigration has changed due to COVID-19 and what to expect […]
» Read More...June 24, 2020
Trump’s Bid to End DACA blocked by Supreme Court, a Big Win for “Dreamers”
The Trump administration’s attempt to dismantle the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a program that protects undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children, was ultimately rejected by the Supreme Court. Those who are affected by this legislation are known as dreamers and represent over 650,000 people. The Supreme Court rejected this proposal […]
» Read More...June 18, 2020
ICE Targets Sanctuary Cities with Increased Surveillance
To tighten up security in sanctuary cities across the nation, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has initiated 24-hour surveillances near homes and job sites of undocumented immigrants. Plans are to deploy hundreds of additional officers in the weeks ahead to increase arrests in communities where local law enforcement agencies are not cooperating with federal immigration […]
» Read More...June 10, 2020
Surin & Griffin, P.C. 2020 Super Lawyers
Surin & Griffin, P.C. is proud to announce that two of its founding partners, Elizabeth C. Surin and Thomas M. Griffin, have been selected to this year’s Pennsylvania Super Lawyers list. Super Lawyers annually chooses attorneys from around the country for this distinguished award using a patented selection process incorporating peer evaluations with stringent independent […]
» Read More...May 28, 2020
Temporary Halt on Green Card Applications
A Permanent Resident Card, also known as a green card, allows individuals who are not American citizens to live and work permanently in the United States. In the fiscal year of 2019, approximately 1.1 million people were granted green cards. On April 20, 2020, a temporary band on green cards went into effect for a […]
» Read More...May 14, 2020
Crackdown on Sanctuary Cities Across the Nation
In an effort to crackdown on illegal immigration, Attorney General William Barr recently announced the Department of Justice was taking legal action against local and state governments in sanctuary cities across the country. Lawsuits against certain states have already been announced and more are likely to follow. The move is designed to compel jurisdictions to […]
» Read More...April 23, 2020
Supreme Court Votes for Remain in Mexico Policy to Stay in Place
In a temporary defeat for immigration advocates, the Supreme Court recently ruled that Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) will remain in place while justices review a lower court’s appeal claiming the policy is illegal. Also known as the “Remain in Mexico” policy, the rule requires non-Mexican asylum seekers to return to Mexico while awaiting immigration hearings […]
» Read More...April 9, 2020
Federal Agencies Use Location Data for Immigration Enforcement
After buying access to a database containing the location data of millions of smartphone users across the country, the Trump administration gained one more tool to locate and identify immigrants who may be undocumented. A recent report by The Wall Street Journal describes what may well be one of the largest federal law enforcement uses […]
» Read More...March 11, 2020
What is Involved in a Public Charge Rule Factor Test?
Back in 1882, Congress first introduced the concept of the public charge to deny a United States visa to anyone likely to become dependent on the government for subsistence. The current administration expanded on the concept, recently adopting the public charge rule, which gives the government power to deny visa and green card applicants based […]
» Read More...March 5, 2020