Finding an Immigration Bond Lawyer

Schedule Your Consultation

Someone in my family has been detained by Immigration, what can I do to help? Should we contact an Immigration Lawyer?

“How did this happen?”

This is what you’re probably thinking. Sometimes people who are not US citizens are arrested for crimes, and then when they are done with their jail sentence, they are handed over the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Also, some non-citizens have prior orders of deportation / removal, and if they get pulled over or arrested by the authorities, it will come out that they are subject to deportation.

Being detained by Immigration is very serious. But there may be options.

It is essential that you call an immigration lawyer who has experience dealing with detained immigrants, the bond hearing process, and deportation defense.

It is essential that you have representation because you are dealing with the Government.

Your loved one is detained, and they are scared. You should remain calm, get legal help, and this way they can be guided and not make decisions or statements that could have dire consequences down the road.

Can you tell me about Lightman Law Firm’s experience with the immigration bond hearing process and deportation defense?

Guy Menahem, an immigration lawyer at the Lightman Law Firm, has spent his entire legal career in the immigration field. His focus within immigration law has been deportation defense, asylum, and immigration bond requests. Mr. Menahem is fluent in Spanish, and conversant in Russian and French. He has represented clients from many Latin American and Caribbean countries, in addition to Russia, Central Asia, Pakistan, China, and West Africa.

Contact us today: (212) 643-0985

What is an immigration bond?

An immigration bond is money that is paid to the Government to ensure that an individual will show up to their court hearings.

In exchange for the payment of this money, which is held pending the proceedings, the person being detained gets released. If they miss a hearing, the money is lost. The government will keep it. If they do show up to all of their hearings and comply with the Court requirements, the money will be given back to the person who paid the money, at the end of the proceedings.

The person who furnished the bond will get their money back, even if the non-citizen loses their case, as long as they showed up to all hearings and complied with all of the Court’s requirements.

Who can post a bond?

To be able to post an immigration bond, you must have legal status in the United States.

How do you ask for a bond?

When a non-citizen is detained, a lawyer has to make a motion to the Immigration Court to have a hearing on whether to grant bond or not. This is why it’s so important to work with an immigration lawyer experienced in deportation defense and the bond hearing process.

What kinds of things is the Court looking at when considering the immigration bond request?

The Court will be looking at several factors. Some of these include:

  • The danger or threat the non-citizen poses to the community at large (they will look at their criminal record to make this determination.)
  • Family and community ties in the United States.
  • The non-citizen’s compliance with other court / probation appointments.
  • The likelihood that they may succeed on any type of immigration case they may pursue.
  • Another big overarching question before the Court is whether the non-citizen is a “flight risk.” As an example, if a non-citizen has no family or children in the US, does not have stable employment, and there does not appear to be any immigration options for them, the Government may seek to argue that the person is a “flight risk” – that if released on bond, the non-citizen has no reason to come to the hearings, and that they would try to disappear.

Did you know? Certain criminal acts will subject a non-citizen to “mandatory detention.”

There are some non-citizens who cannot get an immigration bond. The immigration laws are written in such a way that a long list of criminal offenses (many of which are serious offenses, but surprisingly, a large number of which are not that serious) make a non-citizen subject to mandatory detention.

If a non-citizen is subject to mandatory detention, the Judge will not have the power to grant to an immigration bond, and the person will have to fight their immigration case while detained.

To discuss your immigration bond options, please call our dedicated line: (212) 643-0985