March 13 - May 8, 2025 | CA MCLE: Self-Study

Course Description

This six-week training will explore the process of gaining permanent residence through a family relationship. We will identify which individuals are eligible to immigrate based on family relationships and how each step of the process works. Throughout the course, participants will review both the law and procedure for immigrating through a family relationship, including examination and critique of sample application forms. Topics covered will include immediate relatives and the preference system, retention of priority dates, the Child Status Protection Act, immigrating through marriage, the affidavit of support, adjustment of status, and consular processing. 
 

Course Structure

The course opens on March 13 with access to the e-learning course website and week one assignments. Each week of the course focuses on a specific theme or themes in family-based immigration. Participants will take part in a variety of self-directed learning activities including reading assignments, exercises, and quizzes. The course will be interactive, with opportunities for online discussion among students and between the students and the instructors. The course also includes six live webinars conducted on consecutive Thursdays at 2 p.m. ET starting on Thursday, March 20. Although we encourage participants to attend the live webinars each week, the webinars will be recorded, allowing students the flexibility to work the course into their busy schedules. 
 

Who Should Take This Course?

This is an introduction to family-based immigration for the practitioner who already has some exposure to immigration law fundamentals. Basic familiarity with: (a) immigration law vocabulary, (b) the ways in which an immigrant may gain legal status, and (c) the concepts of inadmissibility and deportability is assumed.

If you are a government employee, you may not register for this training without prior authorization from CLINIC. You may request permission to register by contacting CLINIC at training@cliniclegal.org. 
 

Course Instructors

The instructors for this course are CLINIC attorneys Aly Beinert, Kristina Karpinski, Marta Garcia-Lascurain, and Charles Wheeler. For questions about the course content, please contact Kristina Karpinski at kkarpinski@cliniclegal.org. 
 

Course Completion Requirements

Course participants will receive a course completion certificate if they: (a) attend or view recordings of the weekly course webinar, and (b) complete the required course activities for the week. You have up to two weeks after the last live webinar in the course to meet these requirements. 
 

Registration

The training is for the staff of Catholic Charities and other community-based organizations with IRS 501(c)(3) status and attorneys or legal staff of private law offices. If you are registering as staff of a community-based organization, you must email a copy of your IRS 501(c)(3) letter designating your agency as a nonprofit entity to training@cliniclegal.org. Your registration will be confirmed upon receipt of this letter. If you are an attorney, please include your state bar number. Payment is by credit card only.

Please be sure to register under the correct category and for the correct training. All registration changes or cancellations are subject to an administrative charge of $70.00.  Please note that CLINIC can only issue refunds for an e-learning course until one week prior to the first day of the training. 

Please provide the full name and a working email address for each individual taking this course. We will communicate with each registrant via email only, so it is very important that we have the correct name and email address for each registrant listed on the registration form.