The New York Times recently referenced the work of Milbank partner Linda Dakin-Grimm in an op-ed, “‘If You’re Like Me, You Can’t Sit By. This Is America.’” Ms. Dakin-Grimm, who has retired from her role as a Litigation partner, remains a senior consulting partner with the firm.
Ms. Dakin-Grimm often leads teams of Milbank lawyers in pro bono cases representing immigrant youth in their claims for asylum and Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS), a legal classification that qualifies certain young immigrants who are victims of abuse, abandonment, or neglect, for lawful permanent residency.
Highlighting the complexity of these legal proceedings, Ms. Dakin-Grimm said: “Most people have the idea that it’s enough if I just tell you my tale of woe: ‘I come from a really, really, dangerous place and I was suffering a lot.’ It just doesn’t work that way.” As the op-ed’s author explains, applications for asylum are based on proof of persecution due to an applicant’s membership in a specific group. These applications also establish that the applicant has fled from a country whose government will not provide protection.
In 2018, Ms. Dakin-Grimm was featured in the Los Angeles media for her work assisting a boy from El Salvador. In that same year, Ms. Dakin-Grimm and a pro bono team of Milbank lawyers authored an amicus brief in support of a class action lawsuit brought to protect immigrant children from the improper denial of Special Immigration Juvenile Status (SIJS) and potential removal from the US.
