Delia de la Garza's Legal Blog

I received a decision just recently from an immigration judge in Houston granting an old client of mine cancellation of removal under the Violence Against Women Act(VAWA).  This decision essentially grants her a green card (lawful permanent resident status).  The decision took quite a while to obtain, but who could complain about the wait when the case was eventually granted?  This client of mine, a mexican national, moved to the States with her family when she was only 18 years old.  She married an American man who her family did not approve of, but she was in love.  His blonde hair and blue eyes gave her butterflies.  Unfortunately, there love was shortlived and his desires for her turned out to be merely physical.  She endured countless humiliation and abuse, but never gave up on him.  He finally petitioned for divorce.  All the while, he had previously petitioned for her to obtain permanent residency, but that ended when their interview went bad.  A VAWA applicant is required to establish that s/he was battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by a spouse who is a US Citizen or lawful permanent resident, and that s/he has resided in the United States for a period of 3 years, that s/he is a person of good moral character, and that his/her removal would result in extreme hardship to him/herself or his/her child.  While most applicants of this law are female, it does not exclude male applicants.  Also, applicants may either file proactively with the USCIS or as a defensive application if placed in removal (deportation) proceedings.  This applicant, my client, did apply proactively, but lost.  Still, we were able to apply in immigration court when she was placed in removal proceedings.  Many of the things that were helpful to my client were medical reports and affidavits from family and friends.  Of course, advice of legal counsel was priceless in this case because there are many issues that are not clear cut.  For example, what is the definition of abuse and/or extreme cruelty?  Also, what does the court see as extreme hardship?  I was able to identify and define these issues for the court on my client’s behalf and ultimately persuade the court that my client qualified.