Cleary Gottlieb successfully represented A.S. and M.T., both from Sierra Leone, in their application to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for permanent residency in the United States as Special Immigrant Juveniles.
Initially the Cleary team filed asylum applications on behalf of A.S. and M.T., however, their particular circumstances made them eligible to apply for permanent residency under the Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) category, specifically carved out by Congress for minors under the age of 21 determined to be dependent on the family court and eligible for long-term foster care where it is not in the children’s best interest to return to their country of nationality. Cleary Gottlieb submitted SIJ applications on behalf of both teenagers and represented them at interviews with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.