June 2 – June 23, 2021 | 2-3:30 p.m. ET | CA MCLE: 1.5 per webinar

Virtually every form of immigration relief that a client may seek is impacted in some way by having a criminal record. Beyond the issues of inadmissibility and deportability, a client’s criminal record may fall within a relief-specific bar to eligibility or affect the assessment of good moral character and discretion. This four-week webinar series will guide advocates through the steps for analyzing a client’s criminal record, recognizing the potential impact a record may have on the client’s immigration case, and determining how to appropriately counsel a client facing immigration consequences of a criminal offense.

NOTE: Access to recordings of the webinars are included with your purchase of the four-part webinar series. Your complimentary access will be available until July 23, 2021. Certificates of attendance are only issued if you attend live webinars.

Webinar 1: Getting Started: How Can a Criminal Record Affect Your Client’s Case?

June 2 | 2-3:30 p.m. ET | CA MCLE 1.5

In this webinar, presenters will review best practices for evaluating your client’s criminal history, including effective interviewing and how to obtain and read criminal records. Presenters will also examine the scope of crime-based inadmissibility and deportability, and how crimes affect relief-specific bars to eligibility, good moral character, discretion and exposure to enforcement.

Webinar 2: Convictions, Admissions and Conduct-Based Inadmissibility

June 9 | 2-3:30 p.m. ET | CA MCLE 1.5

This webinar will examine what case dispositions qualify as convictions and when a challenge to the conviction will be recognized for immigration law purposes. Presenters will also review when admissions to criminal conduct or the conduct alone without an admission may trigger an immigration consequence. In addition, the webinar will examine crime-related questions and instructions on application forms, including the role of arrest records in adjudications.

Webinar 3: How Do You Know if a Crime Triggers Inadmissibility, Deportability or a Relief-Specific Bar to Eligibility?

June 16 | 2-3:30 p.m. ET | CA MCLE 1.5

In webinar three, we will discuss the “categorical approach,” which describes the analytical steps used to determine if a crime triggers inadmissibility or deportability. Presenters will discuss the research required to determine the classification of a crime as a felony or misdemeanor under state law and to identify the potential penalty that may be imposed based on the crime classification. Presenters will also cover relief-specific bars to eligibility for applications such as for TPS, DACA, asylum and withholding of removal.

Webinar 4: Now What Do We Do? Putting It All Together to Assess Your Client’s Case

June 23 | 2-3:30 p.m. ET | CA MCLE 1.5

The final webinar in this series will build on the knowledge developed about gathering facts and identifying the ways in which the client’s criminal record may affect eligibility for the benefit sought. Using a series of hypothetical scenarios, presenters will apply that knowledge to determine how representatives would counsel the client in each situation. Presenters will also talk about exposure to crime-based immigration consequences for the legal use of marijuana and strategies for challenging erroneous accusations of gang affiliation.