Advising Immigrants, Refugees & Asylees

For decades, our pro bono efforts have been rooted in strong partnerships with organizations devoted to helping immigrants. For example, since 2001, lawyers in our New York, London, and Paris offices have contributed thousands of hours to VAWA/U-Visa, asylum, and human trafficking matters referred by Sanctuary for Families, a New York-based organization dedicated to helping women and families impacted by domestic violence.

In one matter, a New York team represented a client from The Gambia — who is severely disabled and was undergoing cancer treatment while legally in the US — after her application for permanent residence was denied. Upon review, we determined that our client’s derivative asylum status had been terminated when her parent became a US citizen, an often-overlooked implication of US citizenship that left her ineligible for a green card. This denial posed grave consequences, both for our client’s continued presence in the United States and her ability to access critical life-saving care. Partnering with Sanctuary for Families, we pursued a rare and complex legal remedy in immigration law, ultimately restoring her asylum status and allowing her to reapply for permanent residence. The Latham team engaged on this matter was recognized with the 2025 Above & Beyond Award from Sanctuary for Families.

In Italy, lawyers in our Milan office engage with the Kids In Need of Defense (KIND) Italy Project, a joint effort between KIND and the Italian Refugee Council (CIR). This project was launched to help unaccompanied children as they turn 18, the age at which most immigration protections in Italy fall away. Along with counseling individual clients through the CIR process, a Latham team analyzed the legal cooperation on immigration between Italy and Albania. This research will be incorporated into a report that will be used by the Tavolo Asilo e Immigrazione, a group of 40-plus Italian civil society organizations.

Elsewhere in Europe, our lawyers in Brussels support the Legal Helpdesk, a face-to-face legal clinic that provides much-needed guidance to asylum seekers as they seek appropriate accommodation, food, medical care, and information about the asylum process in Belgium. And, in Paris, our lawyers continue to assist those seeking asylum in France through an ongoing partnership with L’Alliance des Avocats pour les Droits de l’Homme (AADH). This work includes preparing and filing asylum applications, preparing applicants for their interviews before the French asylum authorities, and accompanying them to those interviews.