Forging the Path Ahead
The work of immigration lawyers is central to what it means to live in a just, diverse, and welcoming society. But the obstacles they face are considerable - and growing.
Immigration legal work is time-consuming and complex. At the same time, clients' expectations are rising with anxiety about the politicization of immigration. Trying to meet the demand, immigration lawyers face record rates of stress, overwork, and burnout.
But there are ways to make things better. Immigration lawyers are learning how to be quick on their feet and innovative, pioneering new technological solutions to run a leaner business, while still providing clients with the efficiency and attention they need.
Leaders in the industry are leveraging a new generation of technology to gain more control of their work, accomplish more, and provide their life-changing services to more clients. This report examines the challenges confronting the industry, and explores how legal technology can equip immigration lawyers to face the road ahead.
“Our profession is at a crossroads. We must decide whether we will continue to practice law as we have always done or whether we will instead acknowledge the change that is happening and begin to offer innovative new ways to deliver legal services.”
- Xiomara Hernandez Chair of the AILA Future of Immigration Law Task Force
5 Challenges Facing Immigration Lawyers
The Work Takes More Time And Is Less Lucrative
Immigration issues can rapidly become more complex and time-consuming. As regulations change, matters that used to be handled promptly might now require heroic efforts.
Because many immigration lawyers charge a flat fee for their services, when time and effort requirements shoot up, their work becomes less financially lucrative. Lawyers are caught in a bind: they either have to raise their fees, or stop handling certain high-effort, low-reward matters. This has dire consequences for some of the most marginalized members of our society.
One option for lawyers in this predicament is to dramatically improve efficiency, to be able to do high-quality work in less time.
“Rapidly changing administration policies have dramatically increased the amount of time required for even the simplest cases, let alone time-intensive asylum and removal defense litigations.”
-Marcia Brown, "The Loneliness of the Immigration Lawyer", The American Prospect
Backlogs Grow, And Results Are Slow
Immigration clients want timely solutions to their problems. But increasingly they’re stuck in a backlog limbo, where they face excruciating delays uncertainties and are unable to make even the most basic life plans. For certain case types, this can last for years. Meanwhile, immigration judges are expected to make decisions in mere minutes, without adequate time to consider the merits of the case.
“If every person with a pending immigration case were gathered together it would be largerthan the population of Philadelphia, the sixth-largest city in the United States.”
TRAC Immigration "Immigration Court Backlog Now Growing Faster Than Ever, Burying Judges in an Avalanche of Cases"
Figure 1 | Immigration Court Backlog 2012-2023
TRAC Immigration reported over 2.5 million pending immigration cases in 2023, a steep jump from previous years. Clients face uncertainties and an inability to make life decisions when stuck in this backlog.
Policies Change Rapidly
Immigration law is subject to political whims. Standard policies and procedures can instantly change with each new elected official or appointed leader, leaving lawyers scrambling to find new ways to serve their clients.
For instance, at the end of 2019, with no notice to the public, USCIS implemented a new policy that allowed them to reject any filing with a single blank field - even if the field wasn't applicable to the matter at hand. In the first six months of this policy change, around 60,000 petitions and applications were rejected by USCIS for leaving a space blank.
When policies and regulations change rapidly, lawyers can find themselves tangled up in red tape. Even worse, the kinds of cases that they're accustomed to winning suddenly appear hopeless. In the face of these challenges, the industry needs technology that allows legal professionals to make rapid, system-wide changes to their work product.
Figure 2 | Civil Immigration Filings in Federal Court: Mandamus vs Other
As government processing slows, we've seen an unprecedented spike in mandamus lawsuits.
Clients Have Higher Expectations For Service
Immigration clients are more tech-savvy than ever. They also have higher expectations about on-demand service and answers to their legal questions. This can lead many to DIY options or online alternative service providers.
Some of these alternatives might be genuinely useful to people who can’t otherwise afford or find help. But there is also the worrying growth of “netarios,” unauthorized online immigration legal service providers.
Immigration lawyers who can offer rapid, digital, affordable support would provide a much better option for those who are most likely to be victimized by scams.
“As clients increasingly engage in all areas of the global marketplace, they are expecting a higher level of ingenuity from their legal services provider. This wave of consumers is aptly putting pressure on efficiency, transparency, and cost-effectiveness for the services they are paying for, or they are turning to alternatives to meet their legal needs.”
-Marcia Brown, "The Loneliness of the Immigration Lawyer", The American Prospect
The Result Is High Rates Of Burnout And Stress
Any work with vulnerable people can result in vicarious trauma. But some ways immigration lawyers mitigate or protect against trauma include being able to generate positive results for clients, feeling like they’re making a difference, and receiving fair compensation for their time. When the practice of immigration law becomes less successful and less lucrative, burnout rates skyrocket.
In fact, immigration lawyers experience some of the highest levels of stress in the entire legal profession. Some kinds of immigration lawyers were found to have greater burnout than even social workers, doctors, nurses, and prison wardens.
Figure 3 | Mean Personal Burnout Score
Harris and Mellinger conducted a survey assessing the well-being of over 700 immigration attorneys in the asylum space. Figure 3 compares the attorney's burnout score to other high- stress professions.*
Building A Better Immigration Practice
Many of these problems require larger social and political solutions. But in the meantime, leading immigration firms are taking promising measures to make their work more manageable, increase returns, reduce stress, and help more people.
Harnessing Technology For The New Era Of Immigration Advocacy
Immigration attorneys face considerable challenges. But they don't have to do it alone.
The legal professionals supporting immigrants deserve the tools that can simplify their work, eliminate burnout, and help them deliver the best possible service to their clients. Fortunately, new technologies can make immigration legal work more sustainable and successful for lawyers, staff, and clients.
1. Eliminating Bottlenecks With Efficient Client Intake
Successful law firms rely on a steady stream of clients. Your financial well-being depends on a steady stream of clients. New intake software, like Lead Docket by Filevine, allows firms to vet and respond to potential clients accepting or declining cases with a click of a button. Due to clear visibility into marketing ROI, firms using these tools have increased their lead conversion by 49%, saved hundreds of thousands in advertising costs, and dramatically improved case value.*
- Increased lead conversion rates
- Optimized marketing costs
- Easy referral fee tracking
2. Mastering Complicated Paperwork With Auto-Population
Legal professionals have to dedicate significant time filling out complicated government forms. This work often requires significant research and redundant data entry. But new technology, such as Filevine's AI-enhanced ImmigrationAI platform, can pull data directly from client documents and case files to populate USCIS forms. ImmigrationAI works across a wide range of languages to help lawyers support a diverse client base.
3. Smoother Communication And Collaboration
With case management tools, attorneys can give clients the attention they want in the form they prefer — while protecting their own work-life balance. Filevine allows lawyers to text clients from their case files, share files securely, and automate routine updates. It’s also a powerful tool to improve workplace collaboration, with intuitive tasking and project management features.
4. Streamlining The Payment Process For Improved Realization Rates
The work immigration lawyers do is crucial — and they deserve to be paid promptly for it. New tools can be their ally in the fight, making the billing, time-tracking, and payment process easier at every step. Filevine's Payments helps lawyers create and send accurate invoices and receive speedy payments online.
- Online credit card payments from clients
- Simple bulk invoice generation and editing
- Seven different ways to track time
Help More People, Fight Burnout, And Build A Stronger Career With Filevine
Schedule a demo at Filevine.com today.