Ukrainians Getting Help Settling in the U.S. from 2,000 Activist Lawyers

The Russian invasion in Ukraine has rallied people to support fleeing Ukrainian people, including U.S.-based lawyers who are part of a leftist organization that calls for racial and climate “justice.”

In this case, some 2,000 members of Lawyers for Good Government who are helping Ukrainians get legal status and work permits.

President Joe Biden has already announced Ukrainians would be able to apply for Temporary Protected Status, which allows migrants to live and work legally in the United States.

And now L4GG and the law firm of Kirkland & Ellis have signed up to assist them.

Reuters reported on the development:

The administration estimates 75,000 Ukrainians will be eligible for the program. While they can apply on their own, a lawyer can help them navigate the process and advise on other immigration relief that may be available, said Jacqueline Haberfeld, Kirkland’s pro bono counsel and a coordinator of the Ukraine effort. The number of volunteers was swelling on Tuesday, growing to 1,958 by the afternoon, said Traci Feit Love, founder, president and executive director of Lawyers for Good Government. So far the attorneys come from 76 law firms and 38 companies, she said.

Haberfeld and Love said they have worked together for years on other projects and were thinking of ideas relating to TPS legal assistance for Ukrainians when Haberfeld called Love.

“We’re used to running these projects in this way,” Love said. “We have an idea, one of us gives the other a call.” The report cintinued:

Love said the project will be ready to go live within a “few business days,” but is waiting for the Biden administration to take a formal step to grant Ukrainians TPS relief for 18 months. A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the TPS program, did not respond to a request for comment on the timeline.

“If you have questions about the questions, you’re going to need a lawyer,” Haberfeld said.

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