Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Immigration Law Firm Blog

Self-represented or "pro se" family court litigants

There are access to justice issues in Canada. Many individuals cannot afford a lawyer and are self-represented (particularly in family court). The Court does its best to help guide these individuals. It behooves lawyers to assist where necessary as well, and I am happy that Sanjiv was willing to do so last month. Read more →

New language test requirements for Citizenship applicants

>> News Release — Minister Kenney announces new language rules for citizenship applicants Ottawa, September 28, 2012 — Most citizenship applicants will soon be required to provide up-front objective evidence of their language ability at the time they apply, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced today. This change will be implemented as of November 1, 2012. Currently, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) assesses the language ability of applicants, aged 18–54, solely through interactions with CIC staff and by using the results of the citizenship knowledge test. Raj Sharma Partner Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Suite 800 633 6th Ave SW Calgary AB T2P 2Y5 T: 403-705-3398 Sent from my Blackberry Read more →

Another enlightened response to my article: Exile is no solution to gang warfare

The writer seems really angry doesn't he? Raj Sharma Partner Stewart Sharma Harsanyi Suite 800 633 6th Ave SW Calgary AB T2P 2Y5 T: 403-705-3398 Sent from my Blackberry From: Humber Valley [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Wednesday, September 26, 2012 05:19 PM To: Raj Sharma Subject: RE: Exile is no solution to gang warfare Hi 'Raj', Just wanted to take a moment and personally write to you in regards to you complaining about Kenny's efforts to deport gang members. I'm really not going to go in depth with you here and write a speech and try and debate with you, because frankly, people (such as yourself) simply aren't worth my time. So I'll be a little more of a straight-shooter, this time. We pay enough taxes as it is here in Canada. Those who choose to resort to gang violence are being feed, taken care of and sheltered at the cost of WORKING people such as you and I. Does that make any sense to you, RAJ? Lets put it this way, if you have an issue with Canada, please, move back to where you came from! I'm quite certain that they don't deport their gang members there (exactly how you want... Read more →

Legal Aid Opinion -- Spousal Sponsorship Appeal

When I first started practicing immigration law, I took on Legal Aid files and in the course of being on the roster was required to provide an opinion as to the relative merits of coverage. In this case, the client had attempted to sponsor his wife (who also happened to be his first cousin) from Pakistan. The overseas visa officer refused the application believing it to be a non-genuine marriage. The client accessed Legal Aid and Legal Aid requested an opinion from me. I recommended coverage. Only by continuing with the appeal could we then access the 'Appeal Record' which contained the CAIPS notes and immigration file for the client. The refusal letter itself was very limited in explaining why the application was refused. . While I don't take on Legal Aid files anymore (for a variety of reasons) I hope that these opinions (I'll upload more in the future) are of assistance to junior immigration counsel. In this case, I can report that the client's appeal was successful and both the appellant and his wife testified very credibly before the Immigration Appeal Division. Download Spousal sponsorship appeal Raj Sharma JD LLM Partner Read more →

Immigration lawyer contravenes immigration law

A foreign national cannot work in Canada without authorization. Sometimes even immigration lawyers fail to understand this most basic requirement. A hearing report from the Law Society of Alberta concerning Mr. Gary Hansen, an immigration lawyer here in Calgary can be found here: Download Hansen Hearing report. According to the complainant, Mr. Hansen was illegally employing a number of foreign nationals at his office. The Law Society found that he did employ the complainant in contravention of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. As a result, Mr. Hansen was the subject of reprimand and had to pay a fine. A link to the report can be found here. Raj Sharma JD LLM Partner Read more →

Legal Aid Opinion -- refusal on s.117(9)(d)

When I first started practicing immigration law, I took on Legal Aid files and in the course of being on the roster was required to provide an opinion as to the relative merits of coverage. In this case, the client had tried to sponsor his wife and child to Canada. He had been refused because he did not disclose his wife when he landed in Canada (he was single when he applied for permanent residence, and married only a month or so before coming to Canada). His non-disclosure was inadvertent and he was more than surprised that he was not able to sponsor his wife and child (his child was born after his landing in Canada). I recommended coverage for an application under s.25 of the Act. While I don't take on Legal Aid files anymore (for a variety of reasons) I hope that these opinions (I'll upload more in the future) are of assistance to junior immigration counsel. In this case, I can report a happy ending. The humanitarian and compassionate application was accepted; the client's wife and son came to Canada a year or two ago. Download 2008 08 19 opinion 117 Raj Sharma JD LLM Partner Read more →

Legal Aid Opinion - Judicial Review of an IAD decision

When I first started practicing immigration law, I took on Legal Aid files and in the course of being on the roster was required to provide an opinion as to the relative merits of coverage. In this case, I represented the client before the Immigration Appeal Division. He was a Permanent Resident and faced deportation because of his criminal convictions in this country. After considering the typical "Ribic" factors (establishment, best interests of a child, remorse/rehabilitation, family/community support) the Immigration Appeal Division did not grant relief. I recommended coverage for judicial review of the decision as I felt that a reviewable error had been committed by the Board Member. In this case, I felt that the refusal by the Board to consider evidence of hardship in the purported country of return was an error. While I don't take on Legal Aid files anymore (for a variety of reasons) I hope that these opinions (I'll upload more in the future) are of assistance to junior immigration counsel. Download 20100104 opinion jr iad Raj Sharma JD LLM Partner Read more →

Best Interests of a Child...

The Best Interests of a Child often inform immigration decisions, particularly within the scope of humanitarian and compassionate applications under s.25 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. The Federal Court has considered this concept: Williams v. MCI 2012 FC 166 Mr. Justice Russell made several comments regarding the assessment of a child's "best interests". [59] This Court has also instructed that being “alert, alive and sensitive” to a child’s best interests is a separate analysis from consideration of the threshold standards of “unusual, undeserved or disproportionate hardship.” As Justice Barnes made clear in Shchegolevich, above, at paragraph 12: It is clear that the Officer erred by requiring that Mr. Schegolevich establish that the adverse effects of his removal upon his spouse and his stepson would be unusual, undeserved, or disproportionate. This standard is only to be applied to the assessment of hardship experienced by an applicant from having to apply for admission to Canada from overseas; it does not apply to the assessment of the best interests of a child affected by the removal of a parent. ... [63] When assessing a child’s best interests an Officer must establish first what is in the child’s best interest, second the... Read more →

My Notes at the Federal Court

Here are my notes when I was before the Federal Court a week or two ago. In this case, the Applicant Minister of Citizenship and Immigration challenged the IAD decision in my client's favour. They took umbrage at the fact that cross-examination did not occur of the applicant wife overseas. Raj Sharma JD LLM Partner Read more →

Calgary Herald Op-ed: Exile no Solution to Gang War

The Calgary Herald published an op-ed where I argued against deportation. Exile no Solution to Gang War It is folly to punish your neighbour by fire when you live next door -- Publilius Syrus. The Mara Salvatrucha ("MS-13") gang is a ruthless criminal organization. Originally formed in the California by Central American émigrés, the organization became transnational in character when tens of thousands of gang members were deported by the US back to their home countries in the 90's. Counter intuitively, deporting members of the MS-13 did not alleviate gang violence in the US, and in fact has exacerbated it. These deportation policies "contributed to the size and influence of the gang both in the US and in Central America". Deporting gang members to Honduras or El Salvador, third world countries with inadequate police and criminal justice systems, allowed gang members to act with impunity and expand their operations. Like an invasive species, MS-13 has dominated the eco-system in Central America. As a result, Honduras has the world's worst homicide rate; the MS-13 has a stranglehold over the impoverished countries of Central America; and the gang continues to be active in over 40 states and a thousand cities in America.... Read more →

Calgary Immigration Lawyers - total number of hearings before the IRB

In August, I made an Access to Information Request for "Breakdown of total number of hearings before all Divisions of the IRB by counsel in a table format -- counsel: [Peter] Wong; [Jean] Munn; [Michael] Sherritt; [Michael] Greene; [Bjorn] Harsanyi; [Ram] Sankaran; [Raj] Sharma; [Birjinder] Mangat; [Dalwinder] Hayher from January 1, 2010 to Present". Attached is the scan of the response. Once again, the principals and lawyers of this office have conducted far more immigration hearings than any other office in this city. Download ATI response Read more →