At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, Sanctuary for Families is honoring a team from Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP for their tremendous work and dedication in successfully representing “Ms. C” in an asylum case. The outstanding Kasowitz team included attorneys Teresa Matushaj, Yeilee Woo, Marilyn Vaccaro and Karina C. Aiello Rocha, and legal assistant/interpreter Blanquita Gomezcoello.
For over a decade, Ms. C was the victim of severe persecution in Peru, which included verbal, physical, emotional, and sexual violence by her partner and father of her children. The Peruvian government was unable to protect her from this violence and local police discouraged her on several occasions from filing a police report against her abuser.
The Kasowitz team began working on Ms. C’s asylum claim just three months ahead of Ms. C’s scheduled individual hearing for asylum. Under tight time pressure before the hearing, the Kasowitz team worked with Ms. C to draft her affidavit and witness affidavits, schedule a psychological evaluation, hire an expert to prepare an expert report, conduct country conditions research, draft a memorandum of law, and prepare Ms. C for her testimony. The Kasowitz team worked tirelessly around Ms. C’s schedule in order to prepare everything, including work around the clock as needed. Pro bono teams handling asylum cases typically have more than six months to prepare for an individual hearing, so the Kasowitz team’s dedication in completing the necessary work and building the case for Ms. C in half that time is extremely impressive.
In addition to the team’s stellar legal work, what motivated Deirdre Stradone, Co-Deputy Director of the Sanctuary for Families Immigration Intervention Project, to nominate Kasowitz for recognition was their trauma-informed lawyering. Like the majority of Sanctuary’s clients, Ms. C suffered severe and sustained violence in her home country. The Kasowitz team was exceedingly patient with Ms. C, showing compassion and sympathy as they helped her to overcome her trauma and describe in detail the abuse she suffered. The Kasowitz team met with Ms. C frequently, and their efforts to build trust with Ms. C by providing her the space and opportunity to share her story was a huge factor in developing Ms. C’s claim for asylum.
The Kasowitz team assembled such an incredibly strong case for Ms. C. that at the individual hearing, the Department of Homeland Security attorney stipulated that Ms. C was eligible for asylum and that it would not oppose the application. As a result, Ms. C and her children were granted asylum at her hearing—news that was met with hugs and tears from Ms. C and the entire Kasowitz team. The Kasowitz team is now working hard to help Ms. C and her family members to adjust their status and begin their path to citizenship.
.
—
Join us at our Above & Beyond Awards Ceremony on October 8, 2024, as we honor Kasowitz’s outstanding pro bono work.
Suzy Yaster is a tax lawyer working in-house as a Tax Research & Planning Manager at Warner Bros. Discovery. Suzy is also a member of Sanctuary’s Pro Bono Council and is a Co-Chair of this year’s Above & Beyond Pro Bono Awards Benefit.