Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Law Firm Blog

Immigration Advocacy

Just finished (successfully) another IAD appeal - an application to sponsor a member of the family class (spouse). This one had the distinction of 2 previous refusals by a visa officer and one previous refusal by the Immigration Appeal Division. Once we had dealt with the res judicata issue, we had an appeal de novo before the IAD. By this time, the appellant and the applicant have been married (and separated) for almost 7 years. Preparing for the hearing was daunting given the 5 previous immigration consultants/lawyers retained by the client. There was a lot of 'peripheral' information on the file - and obviously credibility was a central issue. Obviously we sought to concentrate on the basics or fundamentals supportive of a genuine relationship. I'm happy to say that the appeal was allowed, following direct and cross examination of the appellant and applicant. I suppose there's a dynamic in almost all these hearings: appellants counsel have to attempt to retain the focus on clearly defined issues. Minister's counsel may attempt to bring in a matter not central - it's a time honoured tradition of shifting or diverting the (appropriate) focus of the inquiry. I guess a lot of what comes... Read more →

Spousal Interview...

Spousal interviews are a stressful event. India has the notorious distinction of having the highest rejection rate for spousal sponsorships. Almost 1 in 4 marriages are rejected and labeled 'fraudulent'. While the paperwork for a spousal sponsorship application is fairly straightforward, the sponsor and the applicant (spouse in India) really need to be prepared for the interview - especially where an incompatibility has been identified by the visa officer. Generally speaking, the visa officer looks for compatibilities between the couple. This means that, while perfectly genuine, an 'unusual' match may attract greater scrutiny. These matches may include couples where an age difference is greater than the 'norm' (defined as the husband being 5-7 years older than the wife; or where the wife is older). Other incompatibilities may include inter-religious or inter-caste marriages. The compatibilities the visa officer is looking for are the following general categories: Age (the husband is expected to be 5-6 years older) Education (it would be unusual for one partner to be significantly more educated - or less - than the other) Marital status (a second marriage for either the sponsor or applicant is a red flag) Language Religion Social background There is no way to canvass... Read more →

Paralegals...

Further to my post on V. Krishna's article regarding paralegals delivering legal services and the imminent bililng shakeup...a recent article in the Globe and Mail discusses the scam perpetrated by paralegal Vince Chairelli of "Total Management Services". In a Superior Court of Ontario ruling that seethes with controlled outrage, Madam Justice Deena Baltman has ordered Mr. Chiarelli and his company -- Total Management Services -- to reimburse Ms. Elliot's fees, plus interest and legal costs. "He preyed on a vulnerable and unsophisticated client with no regard whatsoever to her best interests," Judge Baltman said. "His entire approach to this case was self-serving and designed to extract inordinate fees with no regard to his client's best interests." Judge Baltman noted that Ms. Elliot was so desperate that she had to borrow money from her mother to pay Mr. Chiarelli's fee. "It doesn't take a lawyer, or even a paralegal, to figure out that spending $1,800 to buy five weeks of time is throwing good money after bad," she said. By a coincidence of timing, Judge Baltman made the ruling within hours of a long-awaited bill to regulate paralegals becoming law in Ontario on Thursday. Under the new law, paralegals will be... Read more →

More fraud...

Thanks to A Hwang for pointing this Globe and Mail article out. Disgraced (and convicted) IAD Member Bourbonnais is serving a 6 year incarceral term. The IRB reviewed over 500 of his decisions and has decided that two dozen of them are "suspect". However - they are not automatically overturning these decisions. They have left that argument to the appellants and their counsel. That is a mistake. The integrity of our judicial (and quasi-judicial) system mandates that the Board contacts each of the appellants in these 'suspect' decisions and provides them every opportunity to re-hear their case. I think that the IRB has yet to learn from these very serious allegations of corruption. All too often the IRB (RPD anyway) hears of sordid tales of corruption in refugees' country of origin. Yet, in Canada, there are now instances of bribery by the very same tribunal that deems fit to pass sentences dealing with the rampant and endemic corruption of countries such as the DRC, Ivory Coast, Iran, Pakistan etc. The IRB has an opportunity here to review and audit the how these decision makers are placed in these positions of power, individuals who (in some cases) do not have a... Read more →

IRB Member Propositioning Refugee Claimant

Another scandal hits the Immigration and Refugee Board (following criminal charges -bribery- against Members in Montreal). This time it is a IRB Member propositioning a refugee claimant from Korea - essentially offering her status in exchange for sex. The refugee claimant's boyfriend videotaped the meeting which the IRB member held outside his chambers with the woman. CTV has obtained the video and the story is found here. Excerpt from the article: In the audio recording, [IRB Board Member] Ellis suggests he can approve her application if she has an affair with him, but warned [Refugee Claimant] Kim not to tell her boyfriend. "He might try to make trouble and say, `Oh yeah, this guy she fucked was a judge. She fucked him and that's why she is fucking him and that's why he said yes'," Ellis said. Ellis seems to understand this risk of doing this. "If we do this and it's shown I did this for improper purposes, then you are screwed too. We are both screwed. I'm in big trouble and your status is gone," he tells Kim. The IRB has suspended Ellis. Chairperson Fleury's statement is found at the Globe and Mail article found here. Mr. Fleury... Read more →