Proskauer For Good

The Proskauer corporate social responsibility and pro bono blog

Asylum Seekers Face More Uncertainty Under New USCIS Interview Scheduling Policy

By Andrew Santana on May 22, 2018 Posted in Immigration, Pro Bono

In a crowded federal building earlier this month, against a backdrop of innocent child laughter and knowing adult tears, among joyful embraces and somber reassurances, a Proskauer client heard the last three digits of his alien registration number echo off the anxious faces around him, and he made his way to the window from where the voice rang. Seconds later—composing himself before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) official on the other side of the glass—his fate came: “Congratulations, you have been granted asylum in the United States.”

Only six months after Immigration Equality, a leading LGBTQ immigrant rights organization, referred this client to us, Proskauer successfully secured his right to remain in the United States indefinitely as an asylee, away from the persecution he had faced in his native country.

Tags: Asylum, Human Rights First, Immigration, Immigration Equality, The Legal Aid Society, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services

Proskauer and A&E Assist Los Angeles Area Vets

By Mark Theodore on May 15, 2018 Posted in Pro Bono, Veterans

My 16-year-old daughter, Helena, recently expressed an interest in helping veterans for a high school service project. I immediately took out my phone and emailed my partner Colleen Hart, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, who is heavily involved in veteran volunteer efforts. Colleen wrote me back inviting Helena to help with the Los Angeles County Bar Association’s Veterans Legal Services Project (VLSP), a clinic that assists Veterans with legal issues.

Helena worked with Colleen at the VLSP in March, and returned home telling me how much she enjoyed the experience and the meaningful work. The clinic meets once a month, so I decided to join her the next time she went. In preparation, I took a training along with several attorneys from Proskauer and our client A&E Television Network.

Tags: A&E, A&E Television Network, LACBA, Los Angeles County Bar Association, Veteran Affairs, Veterans, Veterans Administration, Veterans Legal Services Project, VLSP

New Coalition Pressing for Court Reform in New York State

By William C. Silverman on May 8, 2018 Posted in Pro Bono

The Fund For Modern Courts and Proskauer hosted representatives from a diverse coalition of organizations in New York State and leaders of the state bar at our New York office on May 3 to discuss the necessity of court reform in New York.

The keynote speaker, Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence K. Marks, laid out three primary areas of concern. First, he explained that the court’s structure itself, which consists of 11 overlapping trial courts with different levels of jurisdiction, is “confusing, cumbersome, and complicated.” He stressed that adopting a simplified structure not only would relieve administrative costs but would also better serve the public. To help illustrate his point, he added that Article VI of the New York Constitution (the highly detailed provision concerning the judiciary) contains 16,000 words as compared to the judiciary article in the U.S. Constitution which contains 375 words.

Tags: Chair of the Permanent Commission on Access to Justice, Court Reform, Helaine Barnett, Judge Marks, Pro Bono, Proskauer, The Fund For Modern Courts

Proskauer Housing Court Victory Highlights Importance of Universal Representation

By Jennifer Tarr on May 1, 2018 Posted in Pro Bono

When I walked into Manhattan Housing Court a few weeks ago, I knew we had a strong case. Our client, a disabled 87-year-old woman, was facing eviction from the rent-controlled apartment where she has been living for more than 40 years. Her landlord alleged that she had failed to pay rent that she had in fact paid. The case should have been dismissed on that basis alone, but when the Proskauer team went before the judge to argue our motion for summary judgment, the judge asked whether our client owed rent for months not at issue in the lawsuit.

Tags: Housing, Housing Court, Landlord, Legal Services NYC, Manhattan Housing Court, Pro Bono Legal Services

Victory for a Vet

By Abigail Cousins on April 24, 2018 Posted in Pro Bono, Veterans

As part of Proskauer’s collaboration with the New York City Bar Justice Center, I recently had the honor of assisting an Army veteran in his claim for disability benefits before the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) alongside Alex Hill, Karen Levya-Drivin and Paul Ramundo from Bloomberg LP.

Injured while on active service overseas, the veteran sustained debilitating injuries that were controllable by medication, which he would have to continue taking for the rest of his life. When he returned home, he had a difficult time supporting himself as a result of his injury. He applied for disability benefits at the VA four times, but each time his claim was rejected, either for insufficient documentation or based on the VA policy applicable to his type of injury. In each case, the explanation from the VA was brief, and he did not understand why he kept getting turned down.

Tags: Bloomberg, New York City Bar, New York City Bar Justice Center, NYCB, U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, VA, Veteran, Veteran Affairs

NYU Takes on the Travel Ban

By Seth Fiur on April 17, 2018 Posted in Immigration, Pro Bono

On March 30, 2018, Proskauer filed an amicus brief on behalf of New York University in the United States Supreme Court. The brief was filed in support of the State of Hawaii and its challenge to Proclamation 9645, the most recent version of the Trump Administration’s “travel ban.” The Proclamation at issue in the litigation sets significant restrictions on immigration from specified countries, most of which have a large Muslim-majority population. Both the Fourth Circuit and the Ninth Circuit have upheld injunctions preventing the Proclamation from fully taking effect.

Tags: Amicus, amicus brief, New York University, NYU, Travel Ban, Trump Administration, United States Supreme Court