Instagram Feed | Refugee & Immigration Law Clinic

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We're thrilled to welcome Kara Teng '17 to the sta

We're thrilled to welcome Kara Teng '17 to the staff of the Refugee & Immigration Law Clinic! Kara will be serving as RILC's Immigration Law Advocate, handling complex removal defense cases in Immigration Court and mentoring students and pro bono attorneys in Immigration Court cases.

A graduate of both UH Manoa and Richardson Law, Kara is passionate about advancing immigrant rights, particularly in Hawai'i. As a student at Richardson, she advocated for the re-establishment of the immigration law clinic as part of a project for Professor Mari Matsuda's Organizing for Social Change class. She also spent her summers in law school as an intern for Hawai'i Immigrant Justice Center and the Honolulu Immigration Court.

Following law school, Kara served as a law clerk for the Honorable Rhonda I. L. Loo of the Hawai'i Second Circuit Court. She then served as an Attorney Advisor to the San Francisco Immigration Court, where she advised Immigration Judges on complex matters involving asylum, cancellation of removal, waivers, and adjustment of status. She returned to Hawai'i to work at a local nonprofit, The Legal Clinic, as a public interest immigration attorney before joining the law school.

We're excited to have Kara on board and to benefit from her extensive knowledge of immigration law and removal defense as well as her compassionate, client-centered, and trauma-informed approach to advocacy. To learn more about Kara, visit immigrationclinic.law.hawaii.edu.

We want to express our gratitude to everyone who p

We want to express our gratitude to everyone who participated in last Saturday's affirmative asylum law training/CLE. Over 50 attorneys and law students joined us in person and on Zoom. We hope some of you will join us in our mission to serve refugees and immigrants in our community!

Attorneys should have received CLE certificates, evaluations, a copy of the presentation slides, and a pro bono survey form by email yesterday. If you did not, please contact us at rilcinfo@hawaii.edu.

Special thanks to Committee members Kevin Block, Cori Lau, Jan Tamura, and Krysti Uranaka-Yamashiro; RILC Law Fellow Ethan Higa; Richardson Law staff Heather Young, Davis Lau, and Keira Pease; law students Brissa Flores, Joshua Nam, Huma Nasir, Ivette Olivares, and Leeyannah Santos; and undergraduate student Emilia Lubet for all their efforts organizing and putting on this CLE. Without you, none of this would have been possible. Mahalo nui!

Congratulations to the Class of 2023! 👏👏👏

Congratulations to the Class of 2023! 👏👏👏

Congratulations to @chacof_ and Matt on a beautifu

Congratulations to @chacof_ and Matt on a beautiful wedding! We wish you nothing but love and joy together for the rest of your lives! 👰🏻‍♀️🤵🏻

The first ever RILC x wedding 😍:

🏝️: @pianissimo_hands
📋: Leeyannah
👩‍⚖️: @stephanieharo13
🎸: Professor Chen
🎶: @tricksyer
📷: Zoe Hoff
🌯: Gordo's
💐catcher: Professor Yoo

Happy pre-Commencement Aloha Friday! Congrats to a

Happy pre-Commencement Aloha Friday! Congrats to all of our students who are graduating this Sunday. We look forward to celebrating you!

And Happy Mother's Day to our moms and mom figures!

Don't forget to sign up for our pro bono immigration asylum law training/CLE next Saturday, May 20, if you're interested. Today is the deadline to register. Thank you to all those who have registered -- we are touched by the outpouring of interest!

We're thrilled to have @ejw_org Fellow and @uhmlaw

We're thrilled to have @ejw_org Fellow and @uhmlaw Class of 2023 graduate Danicole Ramos @danicoolramos join us this fall! We're truly excited to help Danicole implement his project of providing legal services and advocating for noncitizen veterans in Hawai'i. Congratulations, Danicole!

Congratulations to Danicole Ramos '23 @danicoolram

Congratulations to Kyla Livingston '23 @kylaliving

Congratulations to Kyla Livingston '23 @kylalivingston on being accepted into the U.S. Department of Justice Attorney General's Honors Program!

Since 1953, the Attorney General’s Honors Program has been recognized as the nation's premier entry-level federal attorney recruitment program; it attracts candidates from hundreds of law schools across the country, representing a broad cross-section of experiences and interests. Kyla will be working as an Attorney Advisor in the Office of the Chief Immigration Judge in New York City.

Swipe through to learn more about Kyla and why she is excited to be entering public service!

Congratulations to Kenneth Tea '23 @kennethtea_ on

Congratulations to Kenneth Tea '23 @kennethtea_ on being awarded an Immigrant Justice Corps @ijcorps postgraduate fellowship!

The first and only fellowship of its kind, Immigrant Justice Corps (IJC) identifies promising lawyers and advocates passionate about immigration, places them with legal services and community-based organizations where they can make the greatest difference, and supports them with training and expert insights as they directly assist immigrants in need.

IJC was the visionary idea of the late Hon. Robert Katzmann of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. In 2018, Judge Katzmann spoke about the crisis of representation in immigration courts at the Hawai'i Access to Justice Conference held @uhmlaw.

Kenneth is the first @uhmlaw student to receive the IJC fellowship. Swipe through to read more about Kenneth and why he is excited to be entering immigration law.

Join Equal Justice Works @ejw_org on Twitter on We

Join Equal Justice Works @ejw_org on Twitter on Wednesday, May 10, 1-2:30 pm ET, as they announce their Class of 2023 Fellows, including one of Richardson's own!

This week, RILC's Instagram page will be featuring three of our graduating students who are entering public interest immigration law careers. 👏👏👏

Get ready to cheehoo the Class of 2023 through their very last week of law school to commencement!

This is the second of two profiles of the Refugee

This is the second of two profiles of the Refugee & Immigration Law Clinic’s recent pro bono attorneys. We are featuring them to thank them and to encourage more people to volunteer! RILC will be holding an asylum law training for pro bono attorneys and other legal professionals on May 20, 2023. See link in bio to read Greg's full responses and to register for the training.

For almost 40 years, Greg Kim has been a corporate lawyer, practicing in the area of corporate and securities law, including startup work and venture capital. As someone with an entrepreneurial mindset, who is not afraid to try and learn new things, Greg answered the call to service last year when the Refugee & Immigration Law Clinic was looking for a pro bono attorney to assist a stateless Palestinian asylum seeker from Egypt with his defensive asylum case in Immigration Court.

Greg has always viewed learning as a lifelong endeavor. After obtaining his B.S. in Engineering and Applied Sciences from Yale University and his J.D./M.B.A. from UC Berkeley, Greg served as a law clerk to the Honorable Herbert Y.C. Choy of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He began training as a corporate lawyer in the Bay Area at Pillsbury, Madison & Sutro, before returning home to Hawai‘i in 1988, where he joined Goodsill Anderson Quinn & Stifel. In 2004, he launched Vantage Counsel as one of the nation’s first virtual law firms. He then joined several other Silicon Valley-based virtual law firms, before returning to Vantage Counsel in 2018. During his career, Greg founded or co-founded multiple organizations dedicated to entrepreneurship and served on boards at business educational institutions. He has also long taught the Entrepreneurship and Small Business Clinic at the William S. Richardson School of Law.

We are grateful for Greg’s willingness to try something new, his heart for immigrants and asylum seekers, and his commitment to excellence in pro bono representation. Mahalo nui, Greg!

This is the first of two profiles of the Refugee &

This is the first of two profiles of the Refugee & Immigration Law Clinic’s recent pro bono attorneys. We are featuring them to thank them and to encourage more people to volunteer! RILC will be holding an asylum law training for pro bono attorneys and other legal professionals on May 20, 2023. See link in bio for full profiles and to register.

Jan Tamura, WSRSL ‘85, has the distinction of serving not only as Chair of RILC’s Advisory Committee but also as a pro bono attorney for RILC. Guided by her philosophy that she can only fully support an organization when she understands what it is that they do on a day-to-day basis and sees the impact they make, Jan dived right in and has been assisting a young asylum seeker from Myanmar this year with her affirmative asylum application and her application for Temporary Protected Status.

Now retired, Jan was a partner and of counsel at the Honolulu law firm Burke, McPheeters, Bordner & Estes, where she practiced in state and federal courts for over 20 years. During her years in private practice, Jan also established herself as a leader in and champion of work in the public interest, particularly on behalf of women and survivors of intimate partner violence.

Jan also served on numerous boards and committees, and was recognized by the HSBA Young Lawyers Division and the Hawaii Women's Legal Foundation for her public service and contributions to the community.

Despite her prolific and impressive contributions to the community, Jan’s exposure to immigration law practice prior to volunteering for RILC was minimal. Her curiosity, empathy, and legal training and skills, however, quickly enabled her to make a tangible impact on her young client’s life this year. Jan hopes her experience volunteering for RILC as a relative newcomer to immigration law will encourage anyone who is interested to attend RILC’s asylum law training and to take the next step toward making a meaningful difference in an asylum seeker’s life.

Mahalo nui, Jan, for your pro bono service!

#probono #volunteer #wsrsl #hawaii #law

Congrats to WSRSL Professor Richard Chen on being

Congrats to WSRSL Professor Richard Chen on being awarded the UH Board of Regents Medal for Excellence in Teaching! You inspire us to pursue excellence in everything we do. #wsrsl #lawprofessor #uhmanoa

Don't miss RILC's 2023 asylum training for pro bon

Don't miss RILC's 2023 asylum training for pro bono lawyers! Link in bio to register.

#probono #volunteer #hawaii #wsrsl #nationalvolunteermonth

It's National Volunteer Week! The WSRSL Refugee &

It's National Volunteer Week! The WSRSL Refugee & Immigration Law Clinic is excited to offer a FREE training/CLE (3.5 credits) on asylum law and how to prepare an affirmative asylum application. The training will be held on May 20, 2023 from 9 am to 1 pm in the WSRSL clinical building classrooms.

The training is geared towards attorneys who are thinking about representing an asylum seeker pro bono.

Please scan the QR code or visit our website immigrationclinic.law.hawaii.edu for the link to register.

Lunch will be provided so please register by May 12, 2023.

#nationalvolunteerweek #probono #law #volunteer #hawaii

Mahalo to the incomparable Dr. Tin Myaing Thein, w

Mahalo to the incomparable Dr. Tin Myaing Thein, women's advocate, community organizer, and former Executive Director of @pacificgateway. Dr. Thein provided our class deep insight into the political history and the current human rights disaster in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. She enriched the law students' understanding of the situation in Myanmar so that we can serve our Burmese clients better. Thank you!

Grateful for WSRSL students Chiako Fukushima '23,

Grateful for WSRSL students Chiako Fukushima '23, Stephanie Haro-Sevilla '23, Anthony Jim '23, Charles Lee '23, Ivette Olivares '24, Joshua Nam '24, Leeyannah Santos '24, Tatyanna Serraro '23, Kenneth Tea '23, and RILC Law Fellow Ethan Higa '21. Thank you for your dedication, compassion, and sense of humor while serving immigrants with RILC in Kona this past weekend. You are all the favorite child!

Mahalo nui to WSRSL student Ivette Olivares '24 fo

Mahalo nui to WSRSL student Ivette Olivares '24 for organizing and leading a Refugee & Immigration Law Clinic Know Your Rights workshop in Kona this past Saturday!

Ivette presented information in Spanish about navigating the Immigration Court process, how to find an attorney, and different possible avenues for relief in removal proceedings. After the presentation, the community shared their concerns, asked general questions about immigration law, and made appointments with RILC to ask more specific questions at RILC's pop up clinic in Holualoa the next day. Many of those who attended expressed their appreciation for the law school clinic's outreach to and presence on the Big island.

Thank you to WSRSL students Chiako Fukushima '23, Stephanie Haro-Sevilla '23, Anthony Jim '23, Charles Lee '23, Leeyannah Santos '24, Tatyanna Serraro '23, and Kenneth Tea '23 as well as RILC Law Fellow Ethan Higa '21 for your hard work setting up the workshop and ensuring its success! Particular thanks to Stephanie for putting together the informational handouts for our guests to take home.

A big mahalo to Hawaii Island Community Health Center for allowing us to use their beautiful space for this event!

This community event would not have been possible without a generous grant from @hawaiistatebarassociation. Mahalo for your support!

We're pleased to share that two RILC clients from

We're pleased to share that two RILC clients from Myanmar/Burma very recently received Temporary Protected Status, thanks to the efforts of RILC Law Fellow Ethan Higa '21!

Temporary Protected Status ("TPS") is a form of humanitarian relief for migrants who cannot return to their home countries safely, whether because of conflict, protracted unrest, or natural disaster. Myanmar/Burma was designated for TPS after the military coup on February 1, 2021. Despite the fact that the crisis in Myanmar/Burma has only grown worse, with nearly 3,000 killed, 17,000 detained, and more than 1.5 million displaced, the U.S. media largely continues to overlook the situation in Myanmar/Burma.

RILC students and attorneys have been extraordinarily privileged to assist, and continue to assist, the Burmese in Hawai'i with their applications for TPS and/or asylum.

Congratulations to @aplpj EIC @keoniwill and all t

Congratulations to @aplpj EIC @keoniwill and all the WSRSL students on the staff of @aplpj on organizing an unforgettable symposium on "Unpacking the Compacts of Free Association" this weekend!

Prof. Yoo, RILC's Director, was honored to play a role in the symposium by moderating the panel on "The Legal Status of COFA Residents in the United States."

It was an honor to be among so many leaders from the COFA and the broader Pasifika communities. This incredible group of leaders included government officials from FSM and from the US at the federal and local levels, diplomats, nonprofit executives, law firm partners, doctors, scholars, activists, poets, filmmakers, musicians, and dancers. The panelists discussed such topics as security and diplomacy, climate change, migration, health, education, and youth leadership. The impacts of this gathering of COFA and Pasifika leaders will undoubtedly be reflected in policymaking, diplomacy, organizing, and community building for a long time. Mahalo, @aplpj!

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