What are the Differences Between Immigration Solicitors, Lawyers, and Barristers? March 7, 2011

What are the differences between Immigration Solicitors, Immigration Lawyers and Immigration Barristers?

Individuals who need legal representation in an immigration matter now have a number of choices to work through before they make their decision. Clients can choose to be represented by Immigration Solicitors, Lawyers, Barristers or even a combination of the 3 choices. In London, where there are many different types of providers, the best choice can seem far off.

How then to make your choice? Here are our top tips for making your choice.

Before choosing your immigration lawyer, be aware that simply choosing one of the three options does not ensure that your immigration case will be handled well. There are good and bad immigration solicitors, immigration lawyers and immigration barristers. Make sure that before you give the case to any type of lawyer, you speak to them at least on the telephone first and make sure they are competent and realistic about your case, rather than simply sounding confident.

Immigration solicitors are firms of solicitors regulated in the UK by the Law Society. They are many in number and one of the advantages of these is that there is likely to be a solicitor who specialises nearby to most locations in the UK, especially in London.

One other advantage is that many solicitors do not specialise in Immigration only. Therefore if the case requires representation in an area other than immigration, eg crime or divorce law, one firm can handle that and the immigration matter under the same roof. This can often save money compared to going to two separate lawyers.

Immigration Lawyers are regulated by OISC, the Office of the Immigration Services Commissioner. One advantage of these lawyers is that they are specialists in Immigration only. Every caseworker must be qualified after taking Immigration examinations before they can undertake immigration examinations. You can therefore be assured that the individual is qualified in Immigration rather than a solicitor who may have limited experience in Immigration.

Immigration lawyers are ranked by 3 levels, you should ensure that if your matter is an appeal that the person who goes along to court for you also has a level 3 qualification.

Immigration lawyers can also provide fixed fee and no win no fee pricing, which immigration solicitors cannot.

Immigration barristers have traditionally been able only to advise and undertake court representation. This changed in 2009. Barristers have traditional strengths in court advocacy and drafting appeal grounds. Whilst barristers can take work directly in immigration, they cannot send letters or other correspondence for clients. Further immigration barrister will almost invariably be in court, which will add to the time when they are unavailable for appointments or telephone conversation.

In any case, immigration clients should always choose carefully that they feel the immigration lawyer they are dealing with is competent and careful, regardless of the category.

Another Post Pankina Decision September 29, 2010

29 September 2010 by Hateem Ali, Immigration Lawyer London

The case of CDS (PBS “available” Article 8 (2)) Brazil [2010] UKUT 305 (IAC) (25 August 2010) represents another blow for the Home Office.

In this case the student’s maintenance requirement was £2,695 but she only had £1,064.69 in her account. The student provided two letters of sponsorship from two separate sponsors who were sufficiently well off. The Tier 4 Policy guidance stated that she could only rely on money held in a bank account in another person’s name, if that person was a parent or guardian. In true fashion her application was refused as the sponsors were neither her parents nor her legal guardians.

Like the Pankina case, the challenge was successful on the basis that the shift in policy was brought about, through a change to the policy guidance rather than through a change of the immigration rules.

“13.   In the absence of specific additional requirements of the Immigration Rules, it seems to us that funds are “available” to a claimant at the material time if they belong to a third party but that party is shown to be willing to deploy them to support the claimant for the purpose contemplated.  Gifts of money have always been acceptable for visitors who need to show they have resources available to them. The need for Immigration Rules to have unambiguous provisions preventing recourse to financial assistance from other persons, if that is what is intended, was spelt out in Mahad v ECO [2009] UKSC 16 [2010] 1 WLR 48 at [26] to [30]. That decision was concerned with the maintenance and accommodation requirements of working holiday makers, but its implications go beyond this category of applicant.”

So what does this decision, actually mean for you? I’ll try and keep it as simple as possible. If you have an appeal pending and the facts of your case are similar then rejoice your appeal is likely to be allowed. Best practice would be to make sure that your immigration lawyer is aware of this case or if you don’t have a lawyer include a copy of the judgment in your tribunal bundle of supporting documents.

If you are applying and have no option but to rely on third party evidence of sponsorship then make sure that you refer to this case in your application covering letter. The UKBA may still refuse your application but any subsequent appeal is likely to be successful.

How a simple photograph from 6 years ago cost me my ILR!! July 21, 2010

Here at Westkin you would be amazed as to how many clients we have heard that from.

It is only once we go through the importance of what they have just received back from the UKBA that they begin to realise the full horror.

Here’s the scenario you are a student attending a prestigious (and expensive!) Tier 4 Highly Trusted Sponsor Academic Institution and have been provided with a valid CAS number.

You have no outstanding tuition fees and you (or your parents) have scrimped and saved to make sure that you can meet the maintenance requirements. You have had the pleasure of paying a fee that is 3 times as high as the “home” student sitting next to you. You send off your extension application before your current leave expires.

A couple of weeks fly by and you receive an acknowledgment from the UKBA thanking you for your application. A couple of months or so pass by when out of the blue you receive a letter returning your documents and covering letter from the UKBA with a big bold x next to the words:

“The photographs must be in the format specified as mandatory in the application form and/ or related guidance notes”

You wrongly assume (and many people do) that this just means that you need to re-send your documents back again but with new photographs and promptly send this off within a couple of days and think to yourself, Phew!! Crisis averted.

Some more time passes by, probably around four months and then you get hit with a refusal letter not accepting your financial evidence and what’s worse  - “No right of Appeal”!!

At this stage you see us at Westkin or another immigration lawyer – would normally pick up the pieces make a new application with a detailed legal covering letter and get you the extension that you should have got originally. Phew again!! Back to college safe knowing you can finish your course!

“I thought this blog was about ILR!!”,

I hear you shout at your monitor.

Well here comes the technical bit. The letter you received from the UKBA is not a refusal letter, it is actually a letter telling you that your application is invalid which basically means that from the point your old visa expired until you are granted your extension then you are deemed as not having valid a valid visa (or “ leave” as the legal term goes).

Now let’s look at one of the mandatory requirements for Long Residence ILR (10 years) which is very clear

“has had at least 10 years continuous lawful residence in the United Kingdom”

Now can you see how a something so seemingly innocuous as a photograph can scupper your chances of getting the ILR which you have carefully planned for?

My advice, read the UKBA Photograph Guidance which is plastered all over the UKBA website and follow it. If in doubt, get a lawyer to make the application (Westkin do this) or get a lawyer to check over the application you have prepared for a lower fee (Westkin do this too!)

Good Luck!!

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