Representing Immigrant Survivors in Custody Cases
- OVW Approved?
-
Yes
- Description
-
Immigrant survivors, regardless of their immigration status, may face significant challenges when accessing courts, including language obstacles for survivors with limited English proficiency, lack of familiarity and mistrust with legal systems, limited financial resources, and difficulty obtaining counsel. Courts may also take into account immigration status, cultural differences, or limited English proficiency when making custody decisions. Effective advocacy includes correcting misinformation, ensuring language access and due process, and emphasizing that immigration status alone is not determinative of a child’s best interests. Attorneys must also be aware of what legal protections may be available to survivor parents, including U-Visas for victims who cooperate with law enforcement and VAWA self-petitions that allow survivors to seek lawful status independently of an abusive spouse, reducing vulnerability and promoting long-term stability for both the parent and children.