About the Immigration Law Clinic

The Immigration Law Clinic consists of eight students and a director. Participants represent individuals who would otherwise lack legal representation and collaborate with local, regional and national organizations to advocate for the rights of immigrants.

Representing Individual Clients

The right to government-appointed counsel does not exist in the immigration context, even though the cases often involve extraordinarily high stakes.  As the Supreme Court once put it, deportation may result in “loss of both property and life, or of all that makes life worth living.” (Ng Fung Ho v. White, 259 U.S. 276, 284 (1922)).  Students in the Immigration Law Clinic have represented low-income individuals in a broad range of immigration matters, including people forced to remain in detention while pursuing claims for political asylum, appeals before the Board of Immigration Appeals and Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, young people seeking Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, and families separated as a result of draconian immigration policies.

Collaborations to Build Justice

Immigration impacts individuals, families and entire communities, and people across the State of Washington and the country have long come together to call for just and humane immigration policies.  The Immigration Law Clinic collaborates with a range of organizations to provide legal and other strategic support aimed at creating transformation and change.

Acquiring Skills and Pursuing Justice

By representing individual clients and partnering with organizations working in the immigration arena, Immigration Law Clinic students acquire core lawyering skills, build professional identity and judgment, and explore what it means to be a lawyer advocating for social justice in the current era.

Immigration Law Clinic News

Katy Cook, 2L, Named to the Husky 100
Katy Cook

Katy Cook, 2L, Named to the Husky 100

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The Husky 100 is an honor that recognizes students who are making the most of their time at the UW.

Know Our Rights: An Information Session for Immigrants and Allies at UW
Georgina Olazcon Mozo

Know Our Rights: An Information Session for Immigrants and Allies at UW

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On Monday, March 24, professor and Immigration Law Clinic director Georgina Olazcon Mozo presented a session for the community moderated by teaching faculty.

Refuge and Relief
A man carrying a sleeping bag in front of a tent at the Riverton Church encampment.

Refuge and Relief

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The Immigration Law Clinic and students from SAI Justice rallied the UW Law community to support King County’s asylum-seeker crisis at a local church.

An Unlikely Path to Immigration Law
Georgina Olazcon Mozo

An Unlikely Path to Immigration Law

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Though she initially resisted after her family’s experiences, Georgina Olazcon Mozo has found her calling as director of the Immigration Law Clinic — and as an empowering mentor.

A Crisis of Empathy
UW Law students with Immigration Law Clinic Director Olazcon Mozo, ready to help unaccompanied children in El Paso.

A Crisis of Empathy

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UW law school students spend spring break advocating for unaccompanied children seeking safety in the U.S.

Clinic Collaborates on Report Regarding Health and Safety in Immigration Detention

On December 14, 2020, the Clinic released a report, “Missed Opportunities: State and Local Authority to Regulate the Northwest Detention Center.” Authored by Clinic students Cheri Barrett (LAW ’21), Wendy S. Martinez Hurtado (LAW ’22) and Professor Jennifer Lee Koh, the report describes the authority of state and local entities to regulate the Northwest Detention Center (NWDC), a for-profit immigration detention facility in Tacoma, WA. The report serves as an appendix to the University of Washington Center for Human Rights report, “Covid-19 and Health Standards at the Northwest Detention Center,” which highlights the failure of the NWDC to control the spread of Covid-19 at the facility and is part of an ongoing series which has examined topics including sanitation of food and laundry, allegations of medical neglect and use of solitary confinement.