Manatt’s Matt Kanny, chair of the firm’s litigation practice; Sirena Castillo, a partner in the firm’s litigation practice; and Adrianne Marshack, a partner in the firm’s class actions practice, were mentioned in a Law360 article on the rise of special immigrant protections denials.
As discussed in the publication, the Trump administration denied that it implemented a policy change and noted that the recent spike in denials of special immigrant protections for those who are 18 to 21 years old is meant to centralize the adjudication process and make it more consistent.
The Manatt team is representing immigrants, working alongside Public Counsel and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, arguing that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services indeed made an improper policy change, which violates the U.S. Constitution’s due process clause.
Recently, the government focused on its argument that California state probate courts do not have grounds to make special immigrant juvenile status findings for petitioners 18 and over.
Castillo spoke to Law360, saying that the attorneys for the proposed class are still reviewing the government’s motion.