IMMIGRATION/DEPORTATION APPEALWORKS®
Appellate practice dedicated exclusively to filing deportation appeals, motions to reopen, reconsider, remand and/or reissue before Immigration Judges or the Board of Immigration Appeals, and filing petitions for judicial review of deportation orders in all of the Federal Circuits of the United States. Although this website is designed mainly to assist immigration attorneys in their deportation defense practice, this website is also useful for noncitizens in deportation proceedings that are acting without attorneys as a source of valid information.
Warning: Do not try to represent yourself in removal or deportation proceedings if you are a noncitizen without attorney. According to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse ("TRAC") (a data gathering, data research and data distribution organization at the Syracuse University in New York) examining immigration courts data at the end of September 2016, it found that 70% of adults with children that were ordered deported by immigration judges throughout the United States did not have legal representation. In other words, they appeared in court without lawyers. TRAC reported that having professional legal representation in removal proceedings makes "Fourteen-Fold Difference in the Outcome" of those cases. See, http://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/396/; see also, the Cardozo Law Review study from the New York Immigration Courts, Figure 7, page 384, showing an abysmal 3% of success for noncitizens appearing without a lawyer in deportation proceedings. Meaning that 97% of them lost their cases and were ordered deported.
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We now offer our clients through third party "PayPal" (for qualified applicants) up to six (6) months in which to pay any of our legal services' fees without incurring any interest via the "PayPal Bill Me Later" payment Services.
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NOTICE: We publish our LEGAL SERVICES AGREEMENT (LSA) in this website for transparency. It is the only service agreement that governs all of our contractual work with all of our clients and it is the only LSA that we enter into for any of the legal services that we offer in this website. Each LSA contains an "Overview", a "Preamble" and a total of 29 separate contractual terms. We referred to them as the "Generic Terms" because they always apply in every LSA without exception. For purposes of convenience at the time of executing an LSA however, we forward to you only those binding terms in the LSA that only apply to your own specific case. We do this by extracting from the Generic Terms in the LSA, the terms that appear in bold-type in the LSA and we forward them to you for your consent and signature in a two (2) page document we name for identification purposes as the "Individual Terms" because they only apply to your own individual case. We also named for the same purpose the LSA terms as the "Generic Terms" because they apply to all cases without exception. Therefore, when you contract our legal services to prepare on your behalf or on your client's behalf any appeal, motion or petition for review, it means that you are fully aware that the LSA Generic Terms always apply to all cases including yours and that you have read, understood and agreed to these Generic Terms as described in the LSA that is published in this website. In other words, instead of forwarding you the entire 10 pages of the LSA, we only send you two (2) pages, those that pertain exclusively to your case, but you know that all the Generic Terms apply in every case.
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Notice of Fee Increases
Our fees for appeals and motions to reopen deportation proceedings are the lowest fees in the country (typically our fees are one half of the fees local lawyers charge for the same services). Due to a welcome increase in the demand for our services and the need to compensate our suporting staff for their services, our fees for all Level A appeals havel increased from $74 per hour to $88 per hour; and our fees for all Level B appeals have increased from $109 per hour to $130 per hour. This increase applies to all contracts entered on or after January 1, 2017.
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OUR COMMITMENT TO OUTSTANDING PROFESSIONAL LEGAL SERVICES' FEES
Our commitment to you, or your client if you are an attorney, is that—once we have agreed to prosecute a "single issue" appeal for you or your client, we will complete and prosecute the appeal process before the BIA for the same costs we entered into a contract with you, regardless of the hours that it will actually take to complete the appeal process on your behalf. This means that if we agree to represent you or your client, on appeal to the BIA for a single issue Level "A" appeal (described below), or any multiple issues Level B or Level C appeal (also described below) we will honor that Level A appeal or Level B or Level C appeal costs whether or not we end up doing more work on your behalf than we originally anticipated.
The appeal levels A, B and C, are described and defined immediately below.
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| There are three (3) separate schedules of fees that vary based on the complexity of the issue on appeal itself, and from appeals containing either a "single" or "multiple" issues as described below. Also note that the fees shown below apply equaly to an "appeal" to the Board of Immigration Appeals as well as to a "motion to reopen" or to "reconsider" or to "remand" whether the motion to reopen, reconsider or remand is to be filed before the immigration judge or before the Board of Immigration Appeals.
The information below will assist you in determining the actual legal representation fees (what we charge you for our legal services) and the actual filing and delivering costs (the sum of $110 the BIA charges you as filing fees and the sum of $35/40 as what FedEx charges us for deliverying the documents to the BIA) in your administrative appeal to the BIA (or in your client's appeal if you are an attorney) without difficulty. Keep in mind however, that our very low fees, yes, our—very—low—fees that we charge to prosecute your own appeal (or motion to reopen, reconsider or remand) are the direct result of one primary reason—it is very likely that we have filed hundreds of appeals or motions in a single year involving the exact same issue(s) that may be involved in your own case. Said differently, it is extremely likely that the issues that are involved in your own appeal case (or motion to reopen, reconsider or remand) are issues that we have already dealt with in depth in numerous other appeal cases we have represented throughout the last decade. You should know that appeals and motions to reopen, reconsider or remand tend to involve common issues—for example, where an immigration judge denies a motion to reopen deportation proceedings on the grounds that the noncitizen's motion to reopen did not establish prejudice resulting from the denial of the motion—to the extent that having had the prior experience of arguing a similar or identical prejudice issue to the Board or to an immigration judge successfully gives us the advantage over other lawyers that have not had the experience or opportunity to argue the same issues. We researched the law in the applicable jurisdiction in previous cases and we also prepared the legal briefs in support of that same or similar issue successfully. Hence, although we will still be researching the laws to determine whether they are still applicable to the same issue at the present time, we have had the same appellate issues already argued, defined and completed so that the time necessary to conduct legal research and to prepare the legal brief on appeal is substantially reduced. Having had the experienced of arguing the same or similar issue in the appropriate jurisdiction, makes the task of preparing the legal brief in your case significantly more effective. Although the facts of each case are always uniquely distinct and different from case to case, the issues that the facts raise are very frequently one and the same, except that they may will likely vary between the different circuits' jurisdictions. In the end, the legal fees we charge for preparing and filing an appeal are substantially reduced because we have walked through the same road, time and time again. The road we need to travel in your appeal is very familiar to us.
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Appeals involving a single issue (or "Level A Appeals") to be filed with the Clerk of the Board of Immigration Appeals in Falls Church, Virginia, as well as "motions to reopen, to reconsider or to remand" to be filed before the immigration judge or the Board of Immigration Appeals.
Level A appeals consist of "single issue" appeals such as for example, involving a decision of the immigration judge finding that the noncitizen did not establish “statutory eligibility” (based on discretionary grounds) for either asylum, suspension or cancellation of removal, including a finding of ineligibility for waivers such as a 212(c), 212(h) and/or 212(i) waiver of inadmissibility (among others), usually filed in conjunction with an application for adjustment of status.
These Level A appeals are billed to the client at the rate of $88.00 per hour (consisting of a minimum of 20 hours).The total amount billed for Level A appeals is therefore $1,760.00. This appeal fee includes the attorney and paralegal hours involved in the examination of the immigration court transcripts, in reviewing the applicable precedent and all evidence in the client’s files, and includes also of course, the preparation and the filing of the appellate brief with the Board of Immigration Appeals via certified or express mail. The above fees also include the preparation and filing of the Notice of Appeal (or amended notice), if one should be needed. Please note that the filing fee ($110.00) for any appeal is never included as those fees are processing fees owed to the Board of Immigration Appeals at the time of filing the Notice of Appeal and they are paid by the client.
In preparing these Level A appeals, we pay particular attention to the possibility of raising a viable constitutional issue, without which the case may never become eligible for judicial review before the courts of appeals of the United States, because of prohibitory statutes (such as Immigration and Nationality Act, §242(a)(2)(B) and (C)). Said differently, where the sole issue invoked on appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals is grounded on “abuse of discretion”, there is a strategic advantage in raising a constitutional issue if one exists to preserve that issue for challenge later on appeal to a court of appeals. The reason for this is that the noncitizen may be able to use the constitutional challenge to defeat a summary dismissal of a petition for review in the courts of appeals of the United States. Level A appeals are reviewed with each practitioner and/or client individually, and any additional fees if necessary are determined on a case- by-case basis at the conclusion of the review, if different from the usual Level A appeal fee shown below.
Level A appeals also comprise those appeals from decisions of Immigration Judges that have pretermitted the noncitizen’s applications for relief for other reasons—meaning, the Immigration Judge denied the right to the noncitizen to have his or her application be heard outright usually for some technical reason but never on the merits.
As noted above, the total amount billed for these Level A appeals is $1,760.00. And again, this amount includes the total sum of hours (no less than 20 hours) that we will be working in researching the issue involved, reviewing the court transcripts and the administrative record, preparing the Notice of Appeal, and in preparing the most important document of all—the appellate brief required to convince the Board that a material error was committed by the Immigration Judge warranting reversal— times $88.00 per hour. This sum is paid in advance at the time of Immigration AppealWorks® involvement in the case.
Important caveat: Level A appeals are accomplished as intended, within the estimated minimum of 20 hours. Where additional hours are required to accomplish the appeal brief, it is our office policy that the additional hours are fully absorbed by Immigration AppealWorks®. Frankly, there is a good reason for this policy. We believe that after quoting the client a particular appeal’s legal service fee, the legal fee quoted should remain unchanged throughout the representation of the noncitizen in order to build client trust and confidence in all professional agreements with Immigration AppealWorks®.
Click Here to Ask Whether Your Case Is A Level A Appeal
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Appeals containing "Multiple Issues" (or “Level B Appeals”) to be filed with the Board of Immigration Appeals in Falls Church, Virginia, as well as, "motions to reopen, to reconsider or to remand" to be filed before the immigration judge or the Board of Immigration Appeals.
Level B appeals consist of "multiple issues" appeals (as opposed to a “single issue” appeal) and usually involve either discretionary grounds, statutory eligibility challenges and/or procedural or substantive due process challenges. These appeals may also involve the need to file a pre-briefing motion before the Board of Immigration Appeals to either exhaust a particular issue that has not been exhausted, or where the need to introduce “new” evidence is prevalent and permission to present the new evidence must be requested by motion.
These appeals involve additional attorney and paralegal hours of research because they are inherently more complex and challenging than those in a single issue or Level A appeals. These appeals are billed at $130.00 per hour and require a minimum of 22 hours. The total amount usually billed for Level B appeals is therefore $2,860.00.
The attorney and paralegal hours involved in these appeals include the examination of the court transcripts, review and research of the applicable precedent and all evidence in the client’s files and included also are the preparation and filing of the appeal brief with the Board of Immigration Appeals via certified-express mail. They also include the attorney-paralegal time involved in the strategizing of the case, including the likelihood of success on any other issue that, although may not be decisive as to the merits of the case, may nonetheless be of sufficient benefit to the practitioner/client in the overall long-term strategy of the case.
Level B appeals are accomplished as intended, within the estimated minimum of 22 hours. This sum is paid in advance at the time of AppealWorks® involvement in the case. The above fees also include the preparation and filing of the Notice of Appeal (or amended notice), if needed. The appeal fee ($110.00) is not included.
Where it becomes evident at the outset (after a preliminary review of the case, the court transcripts and a careful examination of the issues involved in Level B appeals) that additional hours may be necessary to complete the appeal process, AppealWorks® will first inform and consult with the practitioner/client in advance and will seek his or her approval before going forward with the strategy over such an appeal. Said differently, once an agreement has been made as to the particular level of the legal fees associated with any appeal case, that fee will always be honored by Appealworks®. After entering into the agreement any additional fees for services deemed strategically necessary and that are suggested by Appealworks® will only be charged if the practitioner and/or client him or herself gives us his or her authorization.
Click Here to Ask Whether Your Case Is A Level B Appeal
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Appeals involving decisions based on the noncitizen’s conviction of serious criminal offenses (or “Level C Appeals”) to be filed with the Board of Immigration Appeals in Falls Church, Virginia, as well as, "motions to reopen, to reconsider or to remand" to be filed before the immigration judge or the Board of Immigration Appeals.
These Level C appeal cases involve decisions of Immigration Judges denying applications for relief against noncitizen’s that have been convicted of serious criminal offenses. The majority of these cases are denied by Immigration Judges because the Immigration Judge determined that he or she did not qualify for the relief due to the effect of the conviction over the noncitizen’s eligibility for that relief. Otherwise, these cases may also be denied on the grounds that the application for relief that the noncitizen is applying for (such as a 212(h) waiver; or a 212(c) waiver) involves the exercise of discretion and the judge deciding the case finds that the noncitizen did not demonstrate sufficient grounds to warrant a favorable exercise of discretion. Much attention must be given to these Level C appeals as a result of a 1996 change in the immigration law that prohibits judicial review of decisions involving both, criminal convictions and orders involving the exercise of discretion. This means, in other words, that after the BIA issues an unfavorable decision on the appeal, these cases must involve either a statutory or constitutional argument that (except in very limited situations) was raised in the administrative appeal to the BIA or risk the likelihood that the BIA decision will not be subject to judicial review before the United States Courts of Appeals. For this reason alone, when we take a Level C appeal, we have the obligation to raise viable statutory and/or constitutional challenges in the appeal brief to the BIA in order to preserve the right of the noncitizen to continue to pursue judicial review of the administrative decision in the event the BIA denies or dismisses the appeal. Recall that in the Home page we described that every noncitizen in removal proceedings has generally 3 levels of review. The first is before the immigration judge. The second is before the BIA and the third one is before the United States Court of Appeals. Thus, if a Level C appeal does not raise a question of law or constitutional challenge in the removal proceedings to the BIA, and the case involves a serious criminal conviction and/or is denied on the basis of the exercise of discretion, then, the third level of review is not available to the noncitizen.
These Level C appeal cases are billed at the same rate that Level B appeals are billed ($130.00 per hour) except that the amount of hours involved in these appeals require typically no less than 30 hours. Hence, the total amount for all Level C appeals is $3,900.00.
For more information on individual Level C appeal cases, please fax or email us a statement detailing the preliminary factual and legal grounds or the Immigration Judge’s decision in writing if you have it. We will then contact you at your request by email and provide you with our assessment of the problems involving your case including what may be the right course for you to take to resolve it.
Important: these Level C appeals require a careful assessment of the state (or less frequently a federal) criminal conviction to determine the probability of success in either direct appeal or reopening of those proceedings where the facts and the law support it. A noncitizen who is serious and committed to mount the best defense possible against removal must be prepared to conduct an offensive attack on the validity of the criminal conviction in the state or federal court. If the noncitizen is successful, the efforts mounted in pursuing such results will very likely make the threat of removal or deportation disappear, or be diminished considerably.
As in Level B appeal cases, Level C appeals may require the submission of a pre-briefing motion before the Board of Immigration Appeals in order to exhaust an issue or seeking permission to introduce new evidence. And last, as in all appeal cases to the Board of Immigration Appeals, the appeal filing fee charged by the Board of Immigration Appeals of $110.00 in order to consider the noncitizen appeal is not included in the legal service fees.
In electing how to pay the legal service fees for Appealworks® to handle your Level A, B or C appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals, you may use PayPal to make your payment in full. However, if you chose the PayPal services, please note that there is a relatively small, one time transaction fee charged by PayPal for which you will be billed from our office after your use of their services. In the alternative, you may chose to make a direct bank deposit without any fees to you, or you may transfer funds from your bank to ours, if this would be more convenient for you. In that event, you may be charged a fee, if any, by your own bank for making the transaction. We will not charge any fees to you for such bank transfers.
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