Analyzing Criminal Activity for Immigration Consequences

Noncitizens charged with criminal conduct may have their ability to enter or remain in the U.S. severely limited. Much depends on how the conduct is classified: e.g. whether it can be categorized as an 'aggravated felony,' a 'crime involving moral turpitude, or one of a number of other related grounds of criminal inadmissibility or removability.

When a potential or current client informs you of prior criminal activity and/or arrests, your next steps are absolutely crucial to providing effective counsel. What information and documentation do you need? How do you begin to understand and analyze what you are able to obtain? How do you determine the scope of potential effects and defenses, and how do you begin to formulate strategy? This course will enable attorneys to immediately develop a strategy that gives the client the best chance of success at obtaining the immigration benefit sought despite their criminal history, and/or defend against potential criminal grounds of inadmissibility or removability.

This course will benefit immigration attorneys as well as criminal defense attorneys with noncitizen clients. 

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify the information and documentation required to undertake the necessary analysis 
2. Review the potential immigration consequences of criminal activity
3. Run the applicable analysis to determine which consequences may apply
4. Recognize potential defenses