Legal Service Champions: Human Rights First (New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles)
Human Rights First conducts vital work to protect vulnerable immigrants and asylum seekers across the United States. Jenna Gilbert, Director, Refugee Representation, spoke with me recently about the organization’s exciting new pro bono projects.
Share a bit about HRF: I oversee Human Rights First’s Refugee Representation Program, where we provide pro bono legal assistance to asylum seekers across the country. The work that our organization does is primarily predicated on partnering with pro bono attorneys to provide legal assistance for clients.
It’s a multiplying effect for the work that we do: We’re able to serve far greater numbers of clients by partnering with pro bono attorneys.
We provide full-scope mentorship and want to ensure that our volunteers feel equipped to provide high-quality legal representation to the clients they serve.
How is HRF driving innovation in pro bono?
A lot of our work has become remote since the start of the pandemic. Even the immigration court system and asylum offices had to adapt and engage with a new remote model, and so we were able to better recruit pro bono attorneys and encourage law firms to leverage enthusiasm to put together teams with people across offices and geographic boundaries.
[The remote model] allowed us to expand our reach to pro bono attorneys we wouldn’t have had the opportunity to work with previously.
And then when we set up Project Afghan Legal Assistance (PALA) following the fall of Kabul in August 2021, we were able to open up our representation opportunities to Afghans who were resettled across the country, not just in our office areas.
We’ve also been piloting more limited scope and pro se assistance opportunities. We engaged pro bono attorneys and legal professionals to help with initial legal screenings of clients, to obtain the information we needed to move forward with their cases. It was a great pro bono opportunity because it was very limited scope, it required no legal advice to be given, and people could sign up for as few or as many screenings as they wanted, and if they had more time later on, they could come back and do more.
We’ve just recently launched a “pro se plus” asylum clinic that has had quite a bit of success already. It’s a clinic series breaking down the asylum process into bite-size pieces: from helping the client fill out the asylum application, to gathering supporting documentation, to prepping the client for their interview.
[The “pro se plus” clinic] leverages the skills and interests of our volunteers, provides what’s needed to get the client to the ultimate relief they’re seeking, but with less than full-scope representation.
How does HRF use Paladin?
We have a variety of opportunities listed on Paladin. In our office areas of New York, Washington, DC, and Los Angeles, individuals can sign up to take on full-scope asylum cases. Our PALA Program also offers a variety of opportunities across the country, which range from limited scope representation, clinics, and pro se assistance, to full-scope representation.
What do you want pro bono attorneys to know about your program?
We have over 40 years of experience in working with pro bono attorneys.
The overwhelming majority of those we partner with have no prior immigration experience, and our goal is to bridge that gap and provide the expertise that will help that attorney feel comfortable and build their capacity.
We’re there every step of the way — we’re there to provide training, review documents, and be a thought partner throughout the case.
Thank you to Jenna and the HRF and PALA teams for their tireless work to protect the safety of vulnerable immigrants and asylum seekers. Learn more about HRF’s pro bono opportunities.
