Refugee Law

On June 27, 2018, the Legal Aid Ontario Refugee Law Conference was held at the Jackman Law Building at the University of Toronto. In the spirit of legal excellence and to benefit from the discussion of the wide range of topics regarding the evolving state of refugee law in Canada, Levine Associates attended the Conference. […]

The Trumpist Contagion?   The sequence of facts I am about to reveal sounds so far fetched, so Orwellian in its bureaucratic absurdity that one would assume I am either writing a piece of fiction or describing a sequence of events in some far off dysfunctional country in Africa or the Middle East.  Sadly, this […]

Introduction of New Law Legacy Claims – The forgotten Refugees – UPDATE It has now been about 18 months since the Liberals came to power with the promise of unwinding some of the more Draconian Immigration amendments which were introduced by the former Harper government. In July 2016, I published an article on the status […]

  Now that Donald Trump has become the official Republican candidate for the presidency of the United States, it is time to consider what impact his election might have on Immigration to Canada. 1)      Clearly, Trump has committed himself to removing millions of illegal Mexicans from the United States.  One would expect some percentage of these immigrants to attempt […]

Introduction of New Law In December 2012 Immigration completely revamped the refugee system.  Perhaps the most dramatic change, was to statutorily require that most new refugee claims complete within 60 days of the claimant’s arrival in Canada.  This timeline compares with the 1 to 3 year waits claimants faced prior to the introduction of the […]

  Understanding the “First Safe Country” Concept and Why it’s Obsolete Until the Syrian refugee crisis, it was accepted by those who practice refugee law that a claimant’s failure to make a claim in the First Safe Country—also known as Forum Shopping—could be interpreted by decision makers as evidence that a claimant lacked a subjective […]

Until recently, refugees in Canada have correctly assumed that a positive determination would entitle them to remain in Canada permanently. In fact, until legislative changes in 2012, once a refugee obtained permanent resident status, refugees were guaranteed the right to remain in Canada permanently unless the claimant violated Canadian law, which in some cases resulted […]

In the recent case of Zhen Xiang, 2013, FC 256, lawyers from Levine Associates argued that the Board member had erred by failing to put the claimant on notice, prior to the hearing, that it had concerns about the accuracy of the photograph in the claimant’s Resident Identity Card. The Court noted that the Screening […]

Refugee Reform – One Month Later January 15, 2013 marked the one month anniversary since the government embarked on a radical reform of refugee law in Canada.  A common misconception amongst critics of Canada’s refugee system is that the old refugee system was beyond repair and in desperate need of overhaul.  They argue wait times […]

Q.  I made a refugee claim in 2005 and then was deported and have now returned and wish to make a refugee claim.  Am I eligible?   A.  No.  IRPA indicates at s. 101 that a person who has been rejected by the Board previously is not eligible.  The section is not limited by time […]