At this year’s Above & Beyond Awards, we’re honoring a team of attorneys from Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati for their committed and compassionate advocacy on behalf of “Elizabeth”, a trafficking survivor. Read to learn more.
Claire Stubbe is a Senior Associate in Arnold Bloch Leibler’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution group Melbourne, Australia. She is also a Master of Laws Candidate at the University of Melbourne, Australia.
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At this year’s Above & Beyond Pro Bono Achievement Awards and Benefit, Sanctuary for Families is honoring a team of attorneys from Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati for their committed and compassionate advocacy on behalf of “Elizabeth”, a trafficking survivor.
The WSGR team has worked tirelessly with Elizabeth for more than three years, assisting her and her husband to obtain T nonimmigrant status and to vacate multiple criminal convictions that Elizabeth accrued as a result of being trafficked.
The WSGR team continues to advocate passionately for Elizabeth. They plan to assist her and her husband to apply for lawful permanent residency and they continue to facilitate her cooperation with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement in its human trafficking investigations.
The WSGR team includes Tonia Klausner (Partner), Justin Cohen (Associate), Jason Mollick (Associate), Lee Ann Almeida (Paralegal) and Melisa Desperak (Paralegal).
Elizabeth’s Story
Elizabeth was lured to the United States from Mexico by her trafficker, a man from her neighborhood whom she believed was her loving boyfriend. After arriving in the United States, however, Elizabeth’s dreams were shattered. Her “boyfriend,” an experienced trafficker, forced her into prostitution using brutal tactics of abuse and manipulation. Elizabeth eventually escaped her trafficker but was tragically deceived and trafficked by a second pimp who beat her viciously and drove her back to prostitution.
After years of abuse and exploitation, Elizabeth was arrested and deported to Mexico. Elizabeth returned to her hometown but was ruthlessly stalked and threatened by her first trafficker and his family. Fearing for her life and the safety of her family in Mexico, Elizabeth fled to the United States, where she was ultimately connected with Sanctuary for Families and, subsequently, with WSGR.
Rebuilding with WSGR
The WSGR team began working with Elizabeth in 2015 to help her obtain T nonimmigrant status. At that time, Elizabeth was severely traumatized as a result of her horrific trafficking experiences. Elizabeth was terrified of men and, in particular, men she perceived as holding positions of power. Because of her trauma, at first Elizabeth did not feel comfortable discussing her experiences with the WSGR male attorneys.
Over time and with the assistance of Sanctuary for Families, WSGR worked tirelessly but sensitively to gain Elizabeth’s trust and to learn and understand her struggle and story. While the process was slow and delicate, WSGR ultimately forged a strong and fruitful relationship with Elizabeth. By her choice, Elizabeth began to work with the entire team and became empowered as she forged mutually respectful relationships with the male associates.
When reflecting on the early days working with Elizabeth, WSGR Associate Justin Cohen commented:
“It was certainly a challenge working with Elizabeth at the outset. She had suffered so much trauma and there was such incredible fear underlying her whole case. We needed to establish a bond and earn her trust. It was a slow process but, eventually, she looked to us as a resource to help rebuild her life; it was a remarkable transformation.”
With WSGR’s help, Elizabeth obtained T nonimmigrant status in the United States. She was also able to establish a strong and loving relationship with a man who is now her husband and the father of her two little boys. Happily, WSGR also succeeded in securing Elizabeth’s husband T derivative status, so that the couple can continue to build a life together in the United States.
Jessica-Wind Abolafia, a Senior Staff Attorney at Sanctuary for Families who supervised the team remarked:
“From the beginning, the Wilson Sonsini Team demonstrated great initiative, sensitivity and dedication. They have been a ‘dream team’ to work with and an ideal match for the client.”
The Partnership Continues
WSGR is still advocating relentlessly and passionately for Elizabeth. More recently, the team has helped her to vacate her prostitution-related convictions in New York State and is now seeking vacatur of similar convictions in New Jersey.
As WSGR Associate Jason Mollick explains,
“We filed successful vacatur motions in New York and have a further motion pending in New Jersey, which is one of the first applications of its kind in that State. We are hopeful that, soon, Elizabeth’s entire record regarding trafficking-related offenses will be entirely clean, as it should be. For Elizabeth, this is a completely unanticipated but very welcome development; it is an important part of rebuilding her life and forging a future here in the United States.”
WSGR is also assisting Elizabeth to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in its ongoing investigations of large scale human trafficking rings. Finally, the WSGR team is committed to continuing to represent both Elizabeth and her husband in their applications for lawful permanent residency in the future.
In short, despite numerous hurdles, WSGR’s commitment to Elizabeth’s plight did not falter. The team showed tremendous dedication to their client and as a result of that persistence and passion, WSGR has achieved incredible outcomes for Elizabeth.
Looking back at WSGR’s work with Elizabeth, Partner Tonia Klausner reflected,
“Elizabeth’s case was the first trafficking work our office had taken on. We were incredibly eager to help Elizabeth, but also a little nervous, given we did not have an established track record in the area. Initially, we only envisaged assisting Elizabeth with the T-visa application process but, before long, we had all fallen in love with her. She is one of the strongest most resilient people I have ever met. Since then, we have worked to support Elizbeth in a variety of different ways. We are committed to continue that relationship as she moves towards the T-adjustment application process.”
A Promising Future
Elizabeth continues to heal from her trauma and rebuild her life in the United States. She has completed vocational training and English courses through Sanctuary for Families, is in a happy and stable relationship with her husband and is a proud mother of their sons. For the first time in as long as she can remember, Elizabeth is a free woman looking forward to her future with her family.
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Join us at our Above & Beyond celebration on November 13, 2018, at the RUMI Event Space, 229 W 28th St, New York, NY as we honor WSGR’s outstanding pro bono work. You can buy tickets here.
If you can’t join us, but would like to support Sanctuary for Family’s work, please consider making an Above & Beyond donation here.