Bill Would Require Immigrants Facing Deportation to Have a Lawyer

Bill Would Require Immigrants Facing Deportation to Have a Lawyer

1.15.2020

By NICK REISMAN

Spectrum News (State of Politics) mentioned NYSBA’s role in the proposed bill to guarantee immigrants facing deportation the right to an attorney.

State lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a bill that would create a legal right to a lawyer for New York residents who are facing deportation.

The bill, sponsored by Democratic lawmakers Sen. Brad Hoylman and Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz, was put together by the New York State Bar Association and the New York Immigration Coalition.

“Every day thousands of immigrants statewide face the possibility of deportation without due process of law and a meaningful opportunity to be heard,” Cruz said. “They are our friends, our neighbors, our loved ones. Our nation was and is built on their backs, and they have built their lives on the promises of our nation. However, if they cannot afford a lawyer, they are left to fight a complex immigration system on their own.”