Our Team in the Media
Landings LLP – U of T Law alumnae launch firm devoted to refugee, immigration and human rights law
Warda Shazadi Meighen (JD 2009) says the decision to pursue her area of practice was personal: she and her family arrived in Canada as refugees...
Jacqueline Swaisland – Family facing deportation from Canada say return to Portugal puts ‘our lives at risk’
A family in Milton, Ont., is racing against the clock to be able to stay in Canada, saying that being deported to Portugal will put their health in jeopardy...
Warda Shazadi Meighen Named a 2020 Lexpert® Rising Star
We are pleased to announce that partner, Warda Shazadi Meighen, has been named as a Leading Lawyer Under 40 by Lexpert® Magazine. This honour celebrates leading lawyers in Canada under the age of 40 who have an outstanding track record of success. Here is what ...
Warda Shazadi Meighen – Oxford University Refugee Studies Centre Alumni
Global migration captured my imagination from a young age and years ago, inspired me to become a lawyer...
Jacqueline Swaisland – Canada releasing immigration detainees at ‘unprecedented’ rates amid COVID-19 fears
The number of immigration detainees held in provincial jails and immigration holding centres across Canada has dropped by more than half since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic...
Jacqueline Swaisland – Lucene Charles granted stay so Federal Court can review her case
The call Lucene Charles was desperately waiting for came as she stepped out of the Tropicanada Schwarma and Grill and onto the King Street West sidewalk Friday. She was not being deported...
Erin Simpson – Refugee lawyers applaud federal funding after Ford’s legal aid cuts
Refugee lawyers are applauding the federal government's decision to put $26 million toward Ontario refugee and immigration legal aid services after the province cut the program's budget...
Erin Simpson – Precedent Setter Awards 2019
Erin Simpson was awarded the Precedent Setter Award for her work with Amnesty International, the Canadian Council for Refugees and the Canadian Council of Churches, and their challenge of the Safe Third Country Agreement...
Warda Shazadi Meighen – Provincial legal aid cuts are senseless economic and social policy
The Government of Ontario has cut one-third of legal aid funding. Legal Aid Ontario (LAO) funds legal representation for those individuals whose annual income is less than $17,000 – in other words, the most impoverished in our society...
Warda Shazadi Meighen – The Criminalization of Migration
With over 240 million migrants in the world, including over 65 million forced migrants and refugees, states have turned to draconian measures to stem the flow of irregular migration, including the criminalization of migration itself...
Jacqueline Swaisland – Meet Refugee Lawyer Jacqueline Swaisland
It’s a tumultuous time for refugee lawyers. For Jacqueline Swaisland, the number of people willing to work hard and start over in this country is inspiring. It’s her job to help give those people a chance to start over...
Erin Simpson – Q&A with a refugee lawyer, on “irregular” border crossings in the age of Trump
Erin Simpson, a Toronto-based attorney who sits on the executive committee of the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers, is one of the people working to find out who’s fleeing the U.S., and why...
Warda Shazadi Meighen – M-103: Canadian Muslims need this showing of solidarity
Much has been made this week of something that should have been a simple gesture to a community in mourning. Many Muslims in Canada have been hurting...
Recent Developments
Recent Decisions
Canadian Council for Refugees v. Canada (MCI) 2023 SCC 17 In Canadian Council for Refugees v. Canada (MCI) Justices Kaiser, Wagner, Karakatsanis, Côté, Rowe, Martin, Jamal and O'Bonsawin JJ examined the constitutionality of legislative provisions implementing the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA). The STCA is ...
Recent Decisions
Singh v. Canada (MPSEP) 2023 FC 743 In Singh v. Canada (MPSEP) Justice Gascon reviewed the Applicant’s Refugee Appeal Division (RAD) refusal. On judicial review, Justice Gascon found that due to the incompetence of the Applicant’s former counsel, there was a miscarriage of justice that ...
Recent Decisions
Khan v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 727 In Khan v. Canada (MCI), Justice O’Reilly examined the Officer’s decision to refuse the Applicant’s humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) application. The Applicant was a citizen of Afghanistan, who fled the country fearing persecution due to being a member ...
Recent Decisions
Adair v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 342 In Adair v. Canada (MCI) Justice Rochester examined the Officer’s decision to refuse the Applicants’ sponsorship application due to the Principal Applicant (PA) not meeting the definition of a member of the family class. The PA originally arrived ...
Recent Decisions
Tofa v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 135 In Tofa v. Canada (MCI) Justice Mosley examined the Refugee Appeal Division’s (RAD) decision to refuse the Applicants’ asylum appeal, upholding the RPD’s decision that there were significant discrepancies and inconsistencies in the Applicants’ testimony and evidence. The ...
Recent Decisions
Gopalakrishnan v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 277 In Gopalakrishnan v. Canada (MCI) Justice Ahmed examined the Refugee Appeal Division’s (RAD) decision to dismiss the Applicants’ appeal on the grounds of viable internal flight alternatives (IFA) existing in Bangalore or Mumbai. The Applicants had sought asylum ...
Recent Decisions
Figarola Ahumada v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 246 In Figarola Ahumada v. Canada (MCI) Justice Brown examined the Refugee Appeal Division’s (RAD) decision to refuse the Applicants’ appeal due to credibility findings. The Applicants had initially sought asylum in Canada on the basis of feared ...
Recent Decisions
Palagot v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 214 In Palagot v. Canada (MCI) Justice Petney examined the Refugee Protection Division’s (RPD) decision to refuse to re-opening the Applicant’s asylum claim. With the aid of a fraudulent consultant, the Applicant had initially sough asylum, but due to ...
Recent Decisions
Alajnf v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 151 In Alajnf v. Canada (MCI) Justice Norris examined the Office’s decision to refuse the Applicants’ Humanitarian and Compassionate (H&C) application due to lack of evidence of personalized hardship in Libya. On judicial review, Justice Norris found that the ...
Recent Decisions
Zeng v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 75 In Zeng v. Canada (MCI) Justice Go examined the Applicants’ refused second refugee appeal redetermination decision. The Applicants had originally filed a claim for protection from the Chinese authorities based on the Principal Applicant’s (PA) identity as a ...
Recent Decisions
Tkabo v. Canada (MCI) 2023 FC 15 In Tkabo v. Canada (MCI), Justice Elliott examined both the Refugee Protection Division’s (RPD) and the Refugee Appeal Division’s (RAD) decisions to refuse the Applicant’s claim based on lack of credibility with respect to the Applicant’s identity. On ...
Recent Decisions
Thind v. Canada (MCI) 2022 FC 1782 In Thind v. Canada (MCI), Justice Rochester examined both the Refugee Protection Division’s (RPD) and the Refugee Appeal Division’s (RAD) decisions to refuse the Applicant’s claim based on the exitance of a viable IFA. The RAD determined that ...
Recent Decisions
K.M. v. Canada (MCI), 2022 FC 1726 In K.M. v. Canada (MCI), Justice Strickland examined the Minister’s decision to refuse the Applicant’s Pre-Removal Risk Application (PRRA) due to lack of forward-looking risk. The Applicant originally made a successful refugee claim and became a permanent resident ...
Recent Decisions
Thind v. Canada (MCI), 2022 FC 1644 In Thind v. Canada (MCI), Justice Ahmed assessed an Immigration Officer’s decision to refuse the Applicant’s Temporary Resident Permit (TRP) application on the grounds of lack of unique circumstances to overcome their inadmissibility. On judicial review, Justice Ahmed ...
Recent Decisions
Brown v. Canada (MCI), 2022 FC 1607 In Brown v. Canada (MCI), Justice Sadrehashemi examined the Applicants’ refugee appeal refusal. At issue was whether the Refugee Protection Division (RPD) breached procedural fairness by drawing negative credibility inference from the Applicants’ inability to provide corroborative evidence. ...
Recent Decisions
Gebru v. Canada (MCI), 2022 FC 1563 In Gebru v. Canada (MCI), the Court examined the Immigration Division’s decision to find the Applicant inadmissible to Canada pursuant to ss.34(1)(f) and 34(1)(b) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act for being a member of Tigray People’s ...