Letter from the Editor-in-chief

• Publication year: 2020

Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia

Welcome to the official second volume of the AILA Law Journal! In my immigration law class at Penn State, I opened the 2020 semester with a theme that "Immigration is everywhere." I use this theme to generate a discussion about the ways immigration law touches or intersects with other fields of law. "Immigration law is everywhere" is likewise a defining theme in the current issue of the AILA Law Journal. This issue contains five dynamic articles connecting immigration law to administrative law, tax law, trauma, technology, and history. Each of our authors bring deep experience in the immigration field and are new to the AILA Law Journal.

Professor Maureen A. Sweeney argues that federal courts should not apply Chevron deference to Board of Immigration Appeals or Attorney General decisions on asylum or withholding of removal. She provides a background of Chevron and lays out specific reasons why deference is inappropriate in asylum and withholding of removal cases. Some of the reasons Sweeney analyzes include the treaty source for asylum and withholding of removal, the lack of expertise by agencies in the laws informing asylum and withholding law, and the unique vulnerability faced by asylum seekers. This article illustrates the significant connection between immigration law and administrative law.

Immigration attorneys Hannah C. Cartwright, Liana E. Montecinos, and Anam Rahman, and Professor Lindsay M. Harris explore the intersections of trauma and immigration law by identifying the barriers in recognizing the trauma immigration lawyers may experience during the course of representation. The authors analyze the ethical obligations of immigration attorneys when exposed to trauma and the challenges of meeting standards like competence or diligent representation when they are suffering vicarious trauma. The authors suggest practical ways that the immigration bar can develop techniques for self-awareness and support. This piece resonated personally, as I consider the ways I teach and handle the vicarious trauma my own students face when working with traumatized clients, all while monitoring my own responses to trauma from clients or students. The piece aims to continue the conversation about trauma in the immigration field among the immigration bar, law students, law professors, and leaders. I hope its...