Removal/Deportation Proceedings 

There are two phases to a removal proceeding.  In the first phase, the Master Calendar Hearing, the question of whether or not the person is removable is addressed.  If removal charges are successfully contested, removal proceedings are terminated and the person is allowed to remain in the United States.

In situations where a person is found by the Immigration Judge to be removable, the removal proceeding moves into a second phase where the question becomes whether the person is eligible for and deserves relief that would allow them to remain in the United States notwithstanding their removability.  This is known as the Individual or Merit Hearing

The Kennedy Immigration Firm can competently assist you in presenting the following defenses to deportation:

-Adjustment of Status
-Asylum and Convention Against Torture
-Cancellation of Removal for Permanent Residents
-Cancellation of Removal for Non-Permanent Residents
-Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA)
-INA § 212(c) waivers
-INA § 212(h) waivers
-INA § 212(i) waivers
-INA § 237(a)(1)(H) waivers

Appeals and Motions to Reopen.  Grace Kennedy routinely handles appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) and to federal circuit courts of appeals, as well as motions to reopen for people who have already sustained a final order of deportation or removal.

Detention and Bond Hearings.  Our firm specializes in securing the release of clients who have been detained by the Department of Homeland Security.  Typically, this is accomplished through bond proceedings before the Immigration Court at the outset of removal proceedings or through Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).    Attorney Kennedy has provided continuing legal education to other lawyers on the subject of bonds and release from ICE custody at the State Bar of Georgia.