NEW YORK – June 29, 2022 – As part of its ongoing commitment to providing pro bono immigration assistance to people displaced by the war in Ukraine, global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP has assisted more than 100 Ukrainian refugees in the United States file for either Temporary Protective Status (TPS), employment authorization and/or advanced parole.
The firm’s strong partnership with the New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) and its Ukrainian Immigrant Assistance Project, has resulted in the majority of the Ukrainian TPS cases referred to the firm. The most recent wave, however, sprung from a legal clinic hosted by the New York City Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA) June 16, and from an event hosted in the firm’s New Jersey office. The MOIA clinic served as the launch event for MOIA’s $2 million Ukrainian Response Initiative, which partners with non-profit organizations to help currently residing and newly arrived Ukrainian New Yorkers access immigration legal assistance, translation services, social services, and other resources. MOIA’s all-day event was staffed with Greenberg Traurig attorneys and summer associates.
"Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Greenberg Traurig attorneys and staff have dedicated hundreds of pro bono hours providing Ukrainians with legal advice concerning a variety of matters, including immigration relief. We are proud to tap into GTs strong immigration practice and assist the Ukrainian Response Initiative, providing comprehensive pro bono immigration legal services to Ukrainian refugees in the United States," Greenberg Traurig Global Pro Bono Chair Caroline J. Heller said. "Through trainings, donations, and direct legal assistance our firm continues to help immigrants who have been externally displaced navigate what can often be a complex and cumbersome immigration process."
Greenberg Traurig has deployed its considerable resources to help Ukrainians in several critical ways, including:
- Ongoing attorney trainings, including one led by Shareholders Laura Foote Reiff and Kristen W. Ng for more than 200 attorneys, including clients, on the immigration relief available to Ukrainians in the United States and abroad.
- Hosted a TPS clinic at our New Jersey office for a group that included GT lawyers and an in-house team from one of our large pharmaceutical clients. NYLAG trained the attorneys, who then met with their clients remotely to start to prepare Temporary Protected Status and Employment Authorization applications.
- Various pro bono immigration-related and other legal services to refugees in the United States and internationally.
- Committed to donating up to $2 million in humanitarian aid in addition to financial donations from attorneys and professional staff.
- Numerous attorneys and staff in the firm’s Warsaw office are hosting Ukrainian refugees in their homes and donating and distributing food, clothing, and other essential items.
- The firm has also aligned with leading Ukrainian law firm Avellum, based in Kyiv, by arranging to place a group of Avellum associates in such areas as Mergers & Acquisitions, Real Estate, International Arbitration & Litigation, Competition, and Tax in Greenberg Traurig offices. Initially, Avellum lawyers will be seconded to Greenberg Traurig offices in London, Amsterdam, and Berlin.
NYLAG’s Ukrainian Immigration Assistance Program, which was launched in March, offers various types of legal assistance to Ukrainian nationals in the United States. This includes help in obtaining TPS and other forms of immigration relief; legal services for those facing deportation; advice and assistance for those seeking to reunite with or help loved ones in Ukraine; and up-to-date information and advice on the evolving crisis in the country.
Greenberg Traurig has a longstanding history of assisting refugees worldwide in times of crisis. After the United States withdrew from Afghanistan in August 2021, Greenberg Traurig immediately moved to address the enormous humanitarian crisis unfolding in Afghanistan by training more than 100 Greenberg Traurig attorneys to assist in filing humanitarian parole applications. Thus far Greenberg Traurig has submitted applications for more than 140 families and about 637 individuals, with more applications in the pipeline. Greenberg Traurig has recently taken several asylum cases for Afghan families who were able to evacuate to the United States.
About Greenberg Traurig’s Pro Bono Program: Greenberg Traurig lawyers across the firm’s offices provide pro bono legal services to the indigent and working poor, as well as to numerous civic and charitable organizations dedicated to assisting them. The firm focuses its resources on specialized and interrelated issues including civil rights and affirmative action, anti-human trafficking, family law matters, children’s rights, criminal appeals, immigration and political asylum, housing, and homelessness.
About Greenberg Traurig: Greenberg Traurig, LLP has more than 2400 attorneys in 43 locations in the United States, Europe, Latin America, Asia, and the Middle East. The firm, often recognized for its focus on philanthropic giving, innovation, diversity, and pro bono, reported gross revenue of over $2 Billion for FY 2021. The firm is consistently among the top firms on the Am Law 100, Am Law Global 100, NLJ 250, and Law360 (US) 400. On the debut 2022 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard, it is a Top 15 firm. Greenberg Traurig is Mansfield Rule 4.0 Certified Plus by The Diversity Lab and net carbon neutral with respect to its office energy usage. Web: www.gtlaw.com.