Legal Directory
Catholic Charities of Baltimore Immigration Legal Services, Esperanza Center
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For more than fifty years the Esperanza Center (formerly the Hispanic Apostolate) has provided a wide range of services to new immigrants to the Baltimore Metropolitan Area: short-term social services, referrals to appropriate resources, employment counseling, English as a second language classes, immigration legal services, and healthcare services. Our bilingual staff works with Hispanic and other immigrants to help them acclimate to their new home. Pro bono immigration legal services are provided to minors, victims of crime, human trafficking, and domestic violence. Low-cost representation is provided for both affirmative and defensive immigration cases. This organization provides removal defense and considers detained cases on a case-by-case basis if a family member does an in-person consultation.
| State served: | Maryland |
Services Provided
| Are immigration legal services provided? | Yes |
| Areas of immigration legal assistance: | Adjustment of Status, Asylum applications, Consular Processing, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), Employment authorization, Family-based petitions, NACARA, Naturalization/Citizenship, Removal hearings, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, T visas, Temporary Protected Status (TPS), U visas, Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) petitions |
| Types of immigration legal services provided: | Help completing forms, Filings with USCIS, Representation at Asylum Interviews (Credible Fear Interviews, Reasonable Fear Interviews), Representation before the Immigration Court, Representation before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) |
| Non-legal services: | Administrative advocacy (CIS/ICE/CBP), Citizenship / Civics classes, Department of Justice (DOJ)/Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)-funded services for trafficking victims, Employment services, ESL, Health services, Language services, Legal Orientation Programs (LOP) / Know Your Rights Presentations (KYR), Office Of Refugee Resettlement (ORR)-funded services for trafficking victims, Psychological or psychiatric services, Referrals to other services, Social services |
| Populations served: | Detained individuals, Domestic Violence Victims, Farm workers, Human Trafficking Survivors, Individuals who are not in legal immigration status, Individuals with criminal histories, Individuals with physical/mental disabilities, Juveniles, Lesbian, gay, bisexual & transgender, Torture survivors |
| Languages spoken: | English, French, Hindi, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Urdu, Visaya |
| Access to a commercial interpreting service or language bank: | Yes |
| Nominal fee charged? | Yes |
| Other information: | This organization is a partner of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. |
Staffing Information
| Number of attorneys on staff: | 6 |
| Is organization BIA recognized? | Yes |
| Number of fully accredited BIA representatives on staff: | 1 |
| Number of partially accredited BIA representatives on staff: | 0 |
| Number of paralegals/legal workers on staff: | 3 |
Additional Details
| Pro Bono opportunities? | Yes |
| Network affiliations: | American Immigration Lawyers Association, Asista, Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), Immigration Advocates Network, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS), Lutheran Legal Service Organization |
Volunteering
| Volunteer Coordinator |
Bilal
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Administrative Information
| Contact Person: | |
| Executive Director: |
William J. McCarthy, Jr.
(410) 547-5490
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| Last contact date: | August 20, 2018 |
| Administrator comments: | 8/20/12: updated by Ouranitsa Abbas: oabbas@cc-md.org 1/9/14: tickler 12/29/14: tickler 4/8/16: tickler 20 Aug 2018: UTD |
| IAN Members? | No |
