Family policy and family law have a complex interaction with immigration, citizenship, and asylum law. Family ties are often central to individual rights and status under federal immigration law, yet Congress has established unique definitions and limitations on the family relationships considered for these purposes, and many aspects of immigration law serve to undermine rather than foster family ties. For many people, then, immigration law is constitutive of the family. Beyond immigration law, numerous federal and state laws (including so called “alienage” laws) classify on the basis of immigration or citizenship status, in ways that increase the vulnerability of family members. The unique problems of families with complex nationality or immigration status have been largely invisible to the mainstream of family law.
Business Meeting of Section on Family and Juvenile Law at Program Conclusion.
Business Meeting of Section on Immigration Law at Program Conclusion.