CGRS Releases Children's Asylum Manual

The Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS) is excited to announce the release of our Children’s Asylum Manual! The manual provides a comprehensive guide to asylum law relating to children’s claims.

The manual proceeds in four parts. Part 1 provides a very brief overview of general asylum law. Part 2 covers select procedural issues in children’s cases and considerations for other relief. Part 3, the core of the manual, delves into the substantive legal standards related to children seeking asylum, including discussion of relevant case law, legal theories, and evidence. Although the focus is on asylum, the manual also briefly addresses withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). Finally, Part 4 covers best practices for working with children, survivors of trauma, and interpreters.

The appendices provide the following additional materials: an evidentiary checklist; an interviewing outline; a list of CGRS expert declarations; instructions on accessing CGRS technical assistance; and finally, a set of sample materials, including a sample asylum application and supporting materials for USCIS as well as sample motions for EOIR.

If you are an attorney or legal professional, law student, or asylum seeker and would like to request a copy of the Children’s Asylum Manual to aid you in your asylum case, simply submit a CGRS technical assistance request here: http://cgrs.uchastings.edu/assistance/request

If you are a student, journalist, academic, or other professional seeking to use the manual for research or other purposes, please submit an academic or media request here: http://cgrs.uchastings.edu/contact/intake