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Thank you for your referrals!

This beautiful flower arrangement was given to our partner and immigration lawyer, Erika Portillo as a thank you from a client for some work she did on an immigration matter. What a wonderful feeling when a client thanks you for your hard work!  And to give such beautiful orchids too!

We would like to thank everyone who sends us referrals.  We get a good portion of our business from referrals and your trust in our firm to handle your legal matter is not taken lightly.  We know there are plenty of law firms from which to chose.  We are glad that you decided to chose Guichard, Teng, Portillo & Garrett.  Thank you.

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If you are a California student who has applied for or received approval for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and need financial assistance for college, do not complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid). You need to complete the California Dream Act Application. Go to www.caldreamact.org for more information and the application. After completing it, check with your campus counselors for additional information and actions needed. If you want to learn more about DACA go to www.uscis.gov.

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Are you someone who thinks you can smoke weed while driving? Do you think folks in the cars around you can't smell it when you have your window down? Did you know that driving high is a DUI? Gist of this post is don't smoke pot while driving. But if you decided to do it anyway and got pulled over by law enforcement, give Matt a call at 925.459.8440. He can help you navigate the DMV, Courts and any administrative licensing departments if needed. We sure hope you don't ever have to call Matt about this but if you do he's got the experience to help you. And when you are hiring a lawyer, experience matters.

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If you've been the victim of a crime, you may qualify for an immigration benefit. We have a thriving immigration practice. Our partner, Erika Portillo, has helped so many through the immigration process. Let her help you.

Who qualifies for a visa U?
A U-Visa lets victims of crimes who meet certain requirements stay in the United States. A U-Visa provides the following benefits: You can legally live in the United States for four years. After three years of having a U-Visa you can apply for a green card to stay in the U.S. permanently.

Give Erika a call at 925.459.8440 or email Guichard Teng Portillo & Garrett at info@gtplawyers.com to schedule an appointment. Experience matters. Erika has the experience to help you.

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Sexual abuse. Incredibly hard to discuss - especially if it happened to you. But did you know that our managing partner, Matt Guichard, used to head the sexual assault unit for the Contra Costa District Attorneys Office? And since he started his business did you know he's helped victims receive monetary awards from their perpetrators. We have multiple judgements and settlements ranging from $250,000 all the way up to $20 million. We recently settled one for $2.5 million. He has experience helping victims. Let him help you. Experience matters. Matt has the experience you need. Give him a call at 925.459.8440 or send an email to info@gtplawyers.com to schedule a consultation to discuss your options.

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The following was an article our partner, Erika Portillo, wrote and was published in the September, 2019 issue of Contra Costa Lawyer.

The Importance of the Need for an Independent Immigration Court in Support of Due Process and the Rule of Law and its Volatile Impact in the Courtroom

 | Sep 01, 2019 | Comments 0

Erika Portillo

In recent years, the significant structural conflict of interest of our immigration court has become readily apparent. The U.S. Attorney General, a member of the administrative branch of our federal government, is responsible for overseeing both the judges who decide immigration matters, the Department of Homeland Security/ICE trial attorneys who are opposing counsel, and the Department of Justice attorneys responsible for litigating those very cases at the circuit court level. Our immigration courts should certainly be independent judicial courts, unburdened by the potential for political mischief in order to administer all immigration cases in a fair manner.

The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), which manages the Immigration Court and the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), is currently housed under the Department of Justice. While trial-level immigration prosecutors are housed under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Attorney General supervises the Office of Immigration Litigation (OIL) which defends immigration cases on behalf of the government in the circuit courts of appeal. This inherent conflict of interest is made worse by the fact that immigration judges are considered merely government attorneys, a classification that fails to recognize the significance of their judicial duties and puts them at the whim of the Attorney General. The judges do not enjoy many of the protections of Article III federal judges, such as life-tenure. In fact, immigration judges have no fixed term of office and can be fired by the Attorney General or be relocated to another court at any time.ABA Commission on Immigration, Reforming the Immigration System, Proposals to Promote the Independence, Fairness, Efficiency, and Professionalism in the Adjudication of Removal Cases (2010)

As immigration lawyers we have seen how the office of the Attorney General is aggressively working to make these courts instruments of the administration’s immigration agenda. As part of his powers the Attorney General may overrule immigration Court and Board of Immigration Appeals decisions on his own initiative.

In the past, Attorneys General have used this “self-certification” authority sparingly: under the Obama Administration, for example, this power was only used four times throughout both terms. By contrast, under this administration, the former Attorney General Jeff Sessions self-certified cases six times in less than two years and issued five decisions. In the Matter of A-B- 27 I&N Dec. 316 (A.G. 2018), Sessions unilaterally undermined longstanding asylum protections for victims of domestic violence and gang violence. He claimed the authority to overrule decisions not only of the Board of Immigration Appeals, but also of federal courts of appeals. In the Matter of Castro-Tum, 27 I&N Dec. 271 (A.G. 2018), Sessions suspended decades of immigration court practice by holding that immigration judges lack the power to administratively close cases. Administrative closure allowed immigration judges to take cases off their dockets, when the foreign national, for instance, had a pending application or petition with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services pending adjudication. The government had the availability to request the judge to put the matter back on calendar when deemed necessary. It was a tool that saved much needed resources for the courts and didn’t prejudice any party. Now, as a result of that ill-advised mandate, the courts are again inundated with cases.

Even though many new judges have been hired, their ability to hear cases is limited. On October 1, 2018, then Attorney General Sessions subjected all immigration judges to individual case completion quotas and time-based deadlines as a basis for their performance reviews. Under the requirements judges must complete 700 removal cases in the next year or face discipline which may result in termination of employment.2 Judges are pressured to rush decisions to protect their own jobs, at the same time compromising the foreign national’s right to due process and a fair hearing. Many foreign nationals have their individual hearing (trial) without legal representation, as judges refuse to grant continuances trying to rush a decision.

The administration has also repeatedly attacked immigration lawyers undermining the foreign national’s right to counsel. The administration has referred to them as “dirty immigration lawyers”3 accusing attorneys of engaging in fraud.4 Federal law guarantees noncitizens facing removal the right to counsel but not at the government’s expense.5

The Department of Justice also attempted to end the Legal Orientation Program (LOP), a program that provides a basic orientation for immigrants in deportation proceedings. After universal condemnation, DOJ rescinded its proposed termination of LOP. However, some of the newly hired judges in the San Francisco area have adopted the administration’s position by not allowing pro bono lawyers to assist the unrepresented at their hearings. Prior to that, Judges welcomed the Attorney of the Day Program, offered by the Bar Association of San Francisco, which saved them time and resources by allowing a lawyer to speak with unrepresented individuals before their hearings about their obligations with the Court, deadlines and possible relief. Of great concern is the fact that individuals with valid claims, who do not have resources, either because they are newcomers or are unemployed and do not have the ability to hire a lawyer, end up with removal orders.

As one can readily see, the immigration court system as it is can be easily manipulated. Currently our immigration courts are being transformed based on political views of the controlling party, rather than being a fair and neutral arbiter. The creation of an independent immigration court system outside the control of DOJ would protect and advance America’s core values of fairness and equality by safeguarding the independence and impartiality of the immigration court, in the form of an independent Article I court.


Erika Portillo is an immigration attorney and partner at Guichard, Teng, Portillo & Garrett, with offices in Walnut Creek and San Francisco and is a frequent contributor to the Contra Costa Lawyer. She previously practiced criminal law as a prosecutor for the State of Morelos in Mexico. Erika is admitted to practice in the State of California, the U.S. District Court Northern District and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

 

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From the Walnut Creek Chamber's Facebook page:

We were extremely delighted to welcome the Chinese business delegation from the Shandong Province of China who were very keen in exploring          business opportunities in Walnut Creek city. We were more than happy to have answered to their questions in regards to the government regulations both state and federal, venture capitalism, opportunities and challenges on setting up small businesses.

We would like to thank Walnut Creek City Councilman Kevin Wilk, Jessica Cole from the City of Walnut Creek, our chair Jim Fidelibus, chair-elect Matthew Guichard, past-chair Linda Rimac Colberg and Christopher Teng Guichard, Teng, Portillo & Garrett for their availability at a short notice and being a part of this discussion and share some their valuable information to the Chinese delegates.

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Do you have a student heading off to college? Did you know that once your child turns 18 your ability to access health and financial information is limited as they are now considered adults?

You might want to consider getting a Power of Attorney for Health Care and another for Financial.  If your 18 year old gets hurt while they are away you may have limited access to their health information due to HIPAA laws.

For a reasonable fee we will help you complete the forms and have them notarized while you are here.  Plan on spending about an hour.  Give us a call at 925.459.8440 or click on one of the website contact forms and state you are interested in the Power of Attorney meeting.  We can get it scheduled and you can send your student off with the peace of mind that if something does happen, you have what you need to help.

Looking for something to do in Walnut Creek this weekend? Come hang out at the 38th Annual Art & Wine Festival being held in Heather Farm Park. As it's put on by the Walnut Creek Chamber of Commerce, you might even get lucky and spot our President and Managing Partner, Matthew Guichard working at the Chamber's booth Sunday afternoon. Swing by and say hi.

We think it's important to be involved in our community.  Give back when you can.  Volunteer.  Get involved.  Donate your time.  We do. It makes a difference.

 

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http://http://www.walnut-creek.com/artwinefestivalwc

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