Legal/Immigration
About Our Legal Department
Since 2011, ACANA has served as a Board of Immigration Appeals-accredited community-based organization, allowing us to represent individuals before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), the Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) and other immigration agencies.
Our legal department is unique not only because we specialize in complex cases, but because we use a collaborative approach to solving the most complex cases, and employ other perspectives and disciplines, including social work and psychology.
We also strongly emphasize cultural sensitivity in everything we do because of the nature of our clientele and our work. In addition, as a community-based organization, we offer pro bono or reduced fee services to all of our clients.
The ACANA Legal & Immigration Services department specializes in immigration law, criminal defense for minor offenses, small business services and non-profit services. However, the majority of the work is immigration work, particularly work in family-based cases (immigration forms), naturalization, asylum, and removal and detention, as well as many dual criminal and immigration matters, refugee resettlement and case management services.
Areas of Expertise
- Adjustment of status (legal permanent residence) and green card renewal
- Asylum
- Naturalization
- Family based petitions (I-130, I-129F)
- Removal (deportation) defense
- Dual criminal and immigration matters
- Consular processing and family reunification
- Work permits (employment authorization documents)
- Family Law
- Small Business registration & assistance including:
- Incorporation
- 501(c)(3) application
- Criminal defense (*For misdemeanors only)
Department Head
Legal: Cornelia Weathers, Esq.
Staff Attorney