Our office is prepared to assist, you, your loved ones or criminal counsel concerning the immigration consequences before a plea agreement is decided upon. Call us today for a low cost consultation.

Sometimes a loved one runs afoul of the criminal laws of the United States. If that individual is a permanent resident or has no legal status in the United States then how they resolve any charges pending against them becomes critical to their ability to remain in the US.

While our office does not handle criminal matters we are available to assist family members and criminal counsel with understanding the immigration consequences of any charges, convictions or plea agreements they may face. A recent US Supreme Court decision,Padilla v. Kentucky, No. 08651. Argued October 13, 2009Decided March 31, 2010, reminded us of the stakes involved.

There the court found that counsel must inform a client whether his plea carries a risk of deportation. Padilla has sufficiently alleged that his counsel was constitutionally deficient. The court left open whether he was entitled to relief saying that would depend on whether he was prejudiced.

Changes to immigration law have dramatically raised the stakes of a noncitizens criminal conviction. While once there was only a narrow class of deportable offenses and judges wielded broad discretionary authority to prevent deportation, immigration reforms have expanded the class of deportable offenses and limited judges authority to alleviate deportations harsh consequences. Because the drastic measure of deportation or removal is now virtually inevitable for a vast number of noncitizens convicted of crimes, the importance of accurate legal advice for noncitizens accused of crimes has never been more important. Thus, as a matter of federal law, deportation is an integral part of the penalty that may be imposed on noncitizen defendants who plead guilty to specified crimes