I’ve been enjoying the summer a little too much and I’ve fallen behind on my blogging. Here’s some of the things I should have been blogging about:
1. The Immigration bill – An immigration bill passed in the Senate, but appears to be going no where in the House of Representatives. House Republicans want to take a piece meal approach to immigration reform by passing several smaller immigration laws, rather than a single comprehensive immigration bill. House Republicans are also against a pathway to citizenship. It’s not clear at this point if there will be any immigration reform. For everyone who got excited about the Senate immigration bill, I am reminded of the School House Rock cartoon, I’m Just a Bill. Ultimately, the Senate immigration bill was just a bill. I have been getting calls from people asking about whether they would be covered by the “new” immigration law. I tell them that we don’t have a new immigration law – it’s just a bill and until we have an actual law, I cannot comment on whether anyone would benefit from it.
2. DOMA has been overturned! On June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court decided Windsor v. United States, which struck down the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”). Windsor was not an immigration case. However, since DOMA was struck down, it can no longer be used to prevent same sex spouses from filing immigrant petitions. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service has announced that it is now accepting petitions filed on behalf of same sex spouses.
3. On June 29, 2013, I spoke at the AILA National Conference. I spoke on a panel entitled, “”Becoming an Effective Litigator: Making the Most of Your Client’s Day in Court.”
4. I’ve had some success stories the last two weeks. I had a client obtain adjustment of status. I had a client approved for naturalization. I had another client get her application for deferred action for childhood arrivals (“DACA”) approved.