As is the case with the criminal courts,
“public defenders” are not provided for any immigrant in deportation hearings.
However, many immigration courts have programs established, where pro bono or
free, volunteer immigration lawyers sign up to manage master calendar hearings,
although this is merely a preliminary meeting with the immigration judge.
There is a difference here because
public defenders are defending legal American citizens. Illegal immigrants are
not legal Americans, the Constitution does not protect them.
Master
calendar hearing
If you attend the master calendar
hearing without an immigration lawyer and take advantage of the pro bono
lawyer's volunteer services at this hearing, you ought to be aware that such
services are rather limited. The immigration attorney's intention is merely to
represent persons who haven’t obtained legal counsel yet, on the supposition
that they will do so later, for the "merits" hearing, if any. Then
you may wish to hire the pro bono legal professional to carry on representing
you, or hire an immigration lawyer on your own, for which you will have to bear
the legal expenses.
 |
| You may have came to America illegally but now you are a productive member of society. You have a reason to remain. You have followed every law besides coming here illegally in the beginning. You need an immigration lawyer. You can use this outstanding and substantial legal website to find the legal help that you need: http://immigration.usattorneys.com/. |
As the master calendar hearing begins,
the clerk makes an announcement to ask if any person in court is without legal
representation. Then the pro bono lawyer will move all those who are not
represented out of the courtroom for a discussion. He/she will ask you several
questions to determine if you’ve been served properly with the NTA or Notice to
Appear, as well as other documents, and you are indeed removable as charged.
If it appears that you are to be removed
or deported, the legal counselor will evaluate if you have any
probable relief from deportation or not. The legal representative will then
offer suggestions on the best way to proceed when your case is called at the
master calendar hearing.
How
a pro bono lawyer can help
For the most part, your pro bono legal
professional will help you decide on either to admit
or deny the charges and talk to the judge as your legal
representative. He/she may request for a postponement of the master calendar
hearing so that you can hire an immigration lawyer to represent you for the
remaining part of court proceedings. The judge may permit a short postponement
for you to obtain the services of an immigration legal professional. If this is
the case, there will be another hearing termed as a “continued master calendar
hearing.”
If you lack any basis for denying all
charges, you need to inform the judge of your intention to apply for particular
relief from deportation. The pro bono lawyer can help you plead to all charges
as well as your intended relief. He/she might ask you to hire a legal counselor
before continuing any further, especially if it isn’t clear if you have any
kind of relief from deportation.
If you cannot afford a legal
professional and need low-cost help don’t hesitate to seek assistance from
community organizations in your area even if they might have more clients than
can be easily handled. There are organizations that do what little they can to
assist people in such a predicament.
Seeking
continuance until you find legal counsel
If you return for the next hearing
without legal help and request for more time, be prepared to answer tough questions
as to why you are still unrepresented. For example, if you waited until days
before the hearing to contact an immigration lawyer, you are
likely to face an impatient judge. You may still be granted a brief
continuance, but you would be taking a risk because you would have in the first
place been expected to take the deadline for the first continuance seriously.
If the judge feels that you are simply
taking advantage of the process, you could be expected to take pleadings and
move forward on your case. Doing so alone is not a sagacious idea. Immigration
law is complicated, and the government lawyer will be doing his or her best to
convince the judge to deport you since you broke the law. In some severe cases
but they happen all the time in sanctuary cities such as San Francisco, LA, San
Diego, and so on, you may need a criminal defense lawyer which can be found
right here: http://criminal-defense.usattorneys.com/.
No comments:
Post a Comment