Legal Aid Society
hamburger

Standing with Immigrants

We provide urgent legal services to reunify families and assist low-income immigrants in obtaining lawful status, applying for citizenship, and defending against deportation.

Get Help Now

Every day, in courthouses and communities across the city, we advocate for the rights of all New Yorkers. Learn more about the services we provide.

Get Help
Making a Difference

Projects, Units & Initiatives

Our specialized teams have experience working on nearly every area of law that impacts New Yorkers. Explore the ways we fight on behalf of clients and communities.

A Day in the Life

Navigating the Complex and the Arbitrary in the Immigration Law Unit

Immigration law, Stacy Lam’s focus for the last 20 of her 25 years at The Legal Aid Society, is an especially complex set of problems to solve. It requires an astute knowledge of federal and state laws, and when a certain law went into or out of effect.

Stacy Lam 

Our Impact

Margot Fights For Her Children, a Better Future

When Margot fled violence in Honduras to seek asylum in the United States, she had no idea that, seven years later, she would still be waiting to reunite with her three children.

Margot 

By the Numbers

Our work reunifies families and assists low-income immigrants in obtaining lawful status, applying for citizenship, and defending against deportation so everyone has an equal chance to thrive in New York City.

40%

New York City has 3.14 million foreign-born immigrants, from more than 150 countries, who comprise nearly 40% of the City population.

12K+

New Yorkers assisted in over 5,200 individual legal matters by the Immigration Law Unit

10.5x

Immigrants detained by federal immigration authorities are 10.5x more likely to obtain legal relief in Immigration Court with an attorney.

Make a Meaningful Impact

The Legal Aid Society changes the lives of our clients with the help of our generous supporters.

Support Our Work