UA immigration-law clinic chief ready to work

Beth Zilberman, Director, Immigration Law Clinic Assistant professor, University of Arkansas School of Law
Beth Zilberman, Director, Immigration Law Clinic Assistant professor, University of Arkansas School of Law

FAYETTEVILLE -- Students interested in immigration law have been "very attuned to what was going on in the world," said Beth Zilberman, new director of the University of Arkansas School of Law's Immigration Law Clinic.

Immigration and asylum policies under President Donald Trump have sparked street protests and activism.

Zilberman said her job remains focused on students.

"At the end of the day, it really just is a matter of teaching the students what the law is and how to apply it to individual cases," said Zilberman.

She arrived in Fayetteville after working for the past two years as a fellow at the immigration clinic at Michigan State University College of Law, where she said she taught students and oversaw casework.

Legal clinics at law schools provide free services to clients while giving students an opportunity to work on cases and projects under the supervision of faculty members. UA has seven such clinics, with students able to work on topics such as human trafficking and criminal practice, in addition to immigration.

Zilberman spoke about wanting to ramp up the UA immigration clinic's activity after a period of transition following the departure of Elizabeth Young, the clinic's first director when it began in 2008. Young left in 2016 to become an immigration judge in California.

"The UA Law Clinic has not been very active in recent months," Frank Head, director of Catholic Charities Immigration Services of Springdale, said in an email.

At the same time, the area has seen a rising demand for immigration legal services, said Drew Devenport, an immigration attorney in Springdale with the Davis Law Firm.

"We've certainly seen an uptick this year compared to where we were last year," Devenport said.

As an example, he said he's working on six cases involving removal proceedings that "were started within the last six months and were all related to minor traffic violations."

[U.S. immigration: Data visualization of selected immigration statistics, U.S. border map]

Washington and Benton county sheriff's officers participate in what's known as the 287(g) program, a partnership with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement that gives delegated authority for immigration enforcement, according to the agency's website.

After people are being stopped for "simple traffic violations," Devenport said, "we're seeing a lot more being placed into removal proceedings" whose outcome can be an order to leave the United States.

Devenport led the clinic after Young's departure, while also working as a practicing attorney. Devenport, now an adjunct member of the law faculty, he said, earned his law degree from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville in 2012 and participated in the clinic as a student.

Kristen Castro earned her law degree from UA in May and took part in the immigration clinic last fall and this spring, when it was overseen by visiting professor Christina Pollard.

"For me, personally, the most meaningful part was getting to make a real-life impact with the clients that I worked with," Castro said.

Clients included domestic violence victims who lack legal resident status, she said. Working with Peace at Home Family Shelter, Casto said she helped them work toward what's known as U nonimmigrant status, which allows victims of certain crimes to temporarily stay in the United States. She also helped people seeking asylum, she said.

Last year, the clinic had three to four student attorneys and a client waiting list, Castro said.

"Hopefully they will be able to return the immigration clinic to what it was maybe a few years ago when they had more student attorneys," Castro said.

Zilberman, 34, earned her law degree from Boston College. She studied political science and international relations at the University of California-Davis.

Before working at Michigan State University, she worked as a fellow at the Boston College Law School Immigration Clinic.

Zilberman also previously held a fellowship with Equal Justice Works, working with minors facing deportation after journeying to the United States without their parents, according to the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization. She provided legal representation to girls who were survivors of violence, according to Equal Justice Works.

Her official start date at UA was June 1, and she's earning a salary of $105,000 as an assistant professor of law, UA School of Law communications director Darinda Sharp said in an email. Young, at the time she left in 2016, earned $151,852, a UA spokesman has said. Pollard earned a salary of $105,000.

Zilberman, who speaks Spanish, said four to five student attorneys have signed up to work as part of the clinic this fall, fewer than the six to eight who might participate in the future.

She said she wanted to start with slightly fewer students as she learns about the community. She said she wants to "make sure I'm understanding where the gaps are in service" and "get to know what the community needs really are."

Head, with Catholic Charities Immigration Services, said Zilberman "has the perfect background and legal experience for this challenging position." The organization provides low-cost immigration counseling and support to those who cannot afford private assistance.

"We look forward to working with her frequently," Head said.

Metro on 07/21/2018

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