Temporary Protected Status: Designated Countries, Deadlines, and Application Fees

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) provides Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for immigrants to the United States who are unable to return to their home countries safely because of ongoing armed conflict, an environmental disaster or epidemic, or other extraordinary or temporary conditions. Within the designated time frame, an individual who is granted TPS will not be removable from the United States and will be qualified to obtain an employment authorization document (EAD). The individual may obtain authorization to travel as well.

TPS is a temporary benefit that does not lead to lawful permanent residency or any other immigration status. But an individual who applies for TPS simultaneously may apply for nonimmigrant status, file for adjustment of status based on an immigrant petition, or apply for any other immigrant benefit or protection so long as the individual meets the eligibility requirements.

Currently, the following countries are on the TPS designated list: El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, Somalia, Sudan and South Sudan.

For a complete list of TPS of designated time periods, fees, applications and other important information, click here.


Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.

Washington State Poised to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage

The Associated Press reported that Washington will legalize same-sex marriage now that the state legislature has enough votes to pass the measure. If the bill passes, gay and lesbian couples will be permitted to get married as early as June 2012.

Opponents of gay marriage vow to file a referendum to challenge the bill once it is signed into law by Gov. Chris Gregoire. They will need to gather 120,577 signatures by July 6, 2012. The National Organization for Marriage has pledged to fight same-sex marriage laws in Washington state by announcing it will spend $250,000 "to help fund primary challenges to any Republican who crosses party lines to vote for same-sex marriage in Washington state."

However, a recent University of Washington poll revealed that support for same-sex marriage has increased in the state, with 43 percent of respondents supporting gay marriage, while 22 percent support "giving identical rights to gay couples but just not calling it marriage." The poll found that if the same-sex marriage bill passed, 55 percent  of respondents said "they could vote yes to uphold the law" while 38 percent would vote to against it.

Washington will join Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Iowa, Vermont and the District of Columbia as the seventh state to allow same-sex marriage.

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.

Guidance for Immigration Asylum Cases Involving LGBTI Individuals

The USCIS has released a new training module called "Guidance for Adjudicating Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Refugee and Asylum Claims." The guidance has been in the works for two years in cooperation with Immigration Equality, a national organization that advocates for equality under U.S. immigration law for LGBTI and HIV-positive individuals .

The training module provides appropriately sensitive and helpful questions for officers to use and provides instructions on what types of questions should be avoided; LGBTI-specific examples of harm that constitute persecution in an individual's home country; possible one-year filing deadline exceptions (such as recently "coming out"); and instructions on how to deal with various complex issues (such as understanding that cultural norms in the LGBTI community in the individual's home country may differ from those in the U.S.; that LGBTI applicants are not required to meet pre-conceived stereotypes or "look gay" - a common issue that has arisen in asylum cases in the past; and that former opposite-gender marriages does not mean that the applicant is not lesbian or gay).

The Guidance Introduction said "Interviews with LGBTI or HIV-positive refugee and asylum applicants require the individual to discuss some of the most sensitive and private aspects of human identity and behavior - sexual orientation, gender identity, and life-threatening illness." The new training module will provide attorneys, advocates, and immigration officers with a government guideline similar to those issued for other types of asylum claims.

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.

Commonwealth v. Clarke: Invoking Your Right To Remain Silent By Conduct

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) held that nonverbal expressive conduct can suffice to invoke the right to remain silent.

In Commonwealth v. Clarke, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) transit police arrested defendant Brandon M. Clarke for indecent assault and battery that had occurred at a train station. Clarke was taken to an interrogation room and informed that their conversation would be recorded. One of the officers explained verbally to Clarke his Miranda Rights and that he had a right to sign a written waiver of those rights.

When the officer asked whether Clarke wanted to speak, Clarke responded by shaking his head back and forth to show he did not want to speak. The other officer explained that because Clarke does not want to speak, he is still not free to leave because he would still be charged and would have to appear in court. At that point, Clarke made statements showing that he was confused and eventually waived his rights.

The SJC held that the defendant expressed in a nonverbal manner that he invoked his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent by shaking his head in a negative fashion. The police are required to "scrupulously honor" that right. The SJC concluded that "the detectives did not scrupulously honor the defendant's right to remain silent and thereby eliciting the incriminating response that is the subject of the defendant's motion to suppress, the motion judge was correct in concluding that the defendant's statements must be suppressed."

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.

Foreclosure Thwarted by Glickman Turley

Glickman Turley LLP secured an injunction to prevent a foreclosure of a client's home the day before the auction. Arguing before Norfolk Superior Court, we noted that the lender had promised modification of the predatory loan on three separate occasions but failed to finalize the modification agreement each time.  Additionally, the lender sent three mortgage payments back to the client once the loan was declared to be in default.  Last summer, we sent a demand letter to the lender requesting the promised modification.  The mortgagee did not respond. We also argued that the client did not get 150 days notice of the foreclosure from the assigned mortgagee as required under emergency legislation.  The judge agreed that our client would suffer irreparable harm by letting the foreclosure proceed and that the balance of equity was on her side.  The client will be making mortgage payments into an escrow account during the course of litigation.  There have been a number of recent court decisions which has changed how foreclosures are managed in Massachusetts. Attorney General Coakley has been at the forefront of trying to help home owners under water.  Lenders are now on notice that Massachusetts is promoting fairness to borrowers.

Supreme Court Ruled on GPS Tracking Devices

The New York Times reported that the Supreme Court decided on Monday that a Global Positioning Device (GPS) tracking system placed on a suspect's car by police violated his Fourth Amendment privacy rights. The Court ruled unanimously  on this decision, with the majority agreeing with the rationale that the issue was the placement of the GPS device on private property.

The case, United States v. Jones, involved a Washington nightclub owner who was suspected of participating in a cocaine-selling operation. Antoine Jones's movements were tracked for a month when police placed the GPS device on his Jeep Grand Cherokee without obtaining a valid warrant. Jones had been sentenced to life in prison based on the evidence gathered by police, including the information gathered by the GPS.

Justice Scalia, who wrote the opinion, stated "The government physically occupied private property for the purpose of obtaining information. We have no doubt that such a physical intrusion would have been considered a 'search' within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment when it was adopted."

Justice Alito, who concurred with the majority on the ruling, differed on the rationale: "We need not identify with precision the point at which the tracking of this vehicle became a search, for the line was surely cross before the 4-week mark. Other cases may present more difficult questions."

The lawyer for the defendant in this case said the ruling was a "signal event in Fourth Amendment history," according to the article.

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

Comprehensive Review of Prosecutorial Discretion Policy Shows Positive Results

ICE prosecutors in Denver, Colorado have been racing to meet the mid-January deadline ordered by the Obama Administration to review 7,900 deportation cases before the immigration court, according to a report in The New York Times. They have identified over 1,000 undocumented immigrants who are in deportation proceedings that are not a security risk, allowing them to remain in the United States without legal status. Even though the deportation becomes closed and off the docket, it can be reopened at any time.

The policy is part of an effort by the Obama Administration to curb deportations of individuals who are considered low-priority cases, such as those with no criminal records, as well as those with deep ties to the United States. Through this policy, ICE is able to prioritize its resources to focus on deporting criminals such as gang members and sex offenders - those who pose a threat to society and security. 

Running a case-by-case review has been a daunting task for the ICE prosecutors, but "they said they liked their newfound flexibility in pursuing cases - more like the routine practice of their peers in criminal courts," according to the report. Immigration court judges welcome the prospect of reduced backlogs. 

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

Mortgage Rate Down to Record Low

The Associated Press reported that the average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage is down to 3.88 percent, a record low, according to mortgage buyer Freddie Mac. Over the past four months, the rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage was around 4 percent. The new rates have not stimulated home sales yet as high unemployment and low wage gains make it difficult for people to qualify for loans. Some are worried about purchasing a home that may lose value in a few years. In 2011, previously-owned home sales increased slightly over 2010's figures, but new-home sales are "certainly to be the worst on records going back half a century," according to the report.

Even though the low rates have not motivated people to start buying homes yet, the National Association of Home Builders remains hopeful that these low rates will help to increase home sales within a year.

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

2010 BIA Decision Could Help Undocumented Immigrants Who Crossed the Border Legally

A California man was able to avoid deportation based on a 2010 ruling by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) - a law that could help many undocumented immigrants remain in the U.S, according to a report in the Sacramento Bee.

Rogelio Servin, 32, entered the U.S. with his family when he was child. Even though Servin did not have proper documentation to cross the border from Mexico, he was determined to have entered legally because an immigration officer waved his family through without questioning them. His family had been prepared to explain to the immigration officer that they wished to enter the country to visit their other son who had been severely burned in an accident and was being treated at Shriners Hospital in San Francisco. Servin remained in the country, married his wife and they had three chlildren. 

However, Servin was arrested for drunken driving last year. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security placed Servin in deportation proceedings after learning of his arrest, arguing that he had been convicted of a prior felony and had entered the country illegally. 

The 2010 BIA decision that helped Servin avoid deportation applies to undocumented immigrants who entered the country without sneaking over the border. Immigrants who arrive in the U.S. without documentation and who are immediate relatives of U.S. citizens may be entitled to seek legal permanent resident status if they traveled to the U.S. openly through a customs border and were permitted entry. This ruling does not apply to undocumented immigrants who evade customs officials by crossing into the country through mountains, deserts, and rivers. 

Servin successfully argued his case and "was judged to have come in legally because he was 'inspected and admitted' and he was awarded his green card because he was his family's sole supporter," according to the article. 

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

ICE Charges Worcester Man For Role in Nationwide Identity Fraud Ring

The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reported that U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has charged 50 people, including a Worcester man, with running an identity-trafficking ring. According to federal court documents, the ring sold the identities of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens to individuals over a dozen cities around the country. 


The investigation, which started in April 2009, identified "conspirators in 15 states and Puerto Rico [who] 'trafficked the identities of Puerto Rican U.S. citizens, corresponding Social Security cards, Puerto Rico birth certificates and other identification documents to undocumented aliens and others residing in the United States.'"  


Rafael Rivera Figueroa, a Worcester resident, has been accused of working as an "identity broker" within the ring. The indictment revealed that once Puerto Rican identities were stolen, members of the ring would sell sets of Social Security cards and birth certificates for $700-$2,500 per set. The customers would allegedly use the sets of documents to apply for state driver's licenses, U.S. passports, or to commit financial fraud.


Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.

The Supreme Court Reverses Conviction in Quintuple Murder Case Due To Prosecutorial Misconduct

The New York Times reported today that The Supreme Court reversed the conviction of New Orleans man who had been found guilty of murdering five people. The Court held that prosecutors should have released key evidence to the defense under Brady v. Maryland, another Supreme Court decision from 1963, where prosecutors are required "to provide favorable evidence to the defense."

The killings occurred in 1995 when a group of men ambushed a home in order to steal drugs and money. The occupants of the home were forced to lie down and shot to death. Juan Smith was the only person tried in the killings. The prosecution based its case on Larry Boatner, the lone survivor, who presented eyewitness testimony during the trial. Boatner testified "I'll never forget him" as he pointed to Smith. There was no DNA evidence, fingerprints, weapons, or other physical evidence presented at trial to link Smith to the killings.

Later, reports emerged that the prosecution withheld important evidence from the defense where Boatner had stated in interviews soon after the murders that he could not describe the group of men who entered the home, that he had not seen their faces, and would not be able to identify them. Smith's attorney in the Supreme Court case said "the withheld statements from Mr. Boatner 'constitute the epitome of impeachment evidence.'"

The Court had to determine "only whether the failure [to release the evidence] mattered - that is, in the words of a 2009 decision, whether 'there is a reasonable probability that. had the evidence been disclosed, the result of the proceeding would have been different.'"

The Supreme Court voted in an 8-1 decision that the withheld statements were "plainly material" to the outcome of the case.

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.

Union Blocks ICE Agents From Completing Training Course

The New York Times reported that the National ICE Council, a union representing 7,000 deportation officers in the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), has prevented its members from participating in a deportation training course that the Obama administration had hoped would be completed by January 13, 2012. 

The Obama administration's federal directive would allow agents to use discretion when determining whether a deportation case should be classified as low-priority. Janet Napolitano, Homeland Security Secretary, said that the administration is "mak[ing] good use of strained resources" by allowing agents to prioritize cases. Some examples of immigrants who are here illegally but would be allowed to stay are "elderly people, children, military veterans, college students and parents of young citizens," according to the report. While these cases would be closed, they would not be cancelled. Essentially, low-priority individuals would remain without legal immigration status. 

A spokesman for the National ICE Council said during a congressional testimony in October 2011 that the new policy forces ICE agents "to not enforce the law" and that "law enforcement and public safety have taken a back seat to attempts to satisfy immigrant advocacy groups."

Napolitano said that "each deportation cost[s] at least $23,000...immigration agencies have money for 400,000 removals a year, a goal that the Obama administration has met in each of the post three years." With 11 million illegal immigrants residing in the United States, the agents were ordered to focus on "the worst offenders, including criminal convicts, gang members and foreigners who came back after being expelled." 

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.

New Immigration Proposal for Undocumented Immigrants

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Obama administration has proposed a rule that would permit certain undocumented immigrants to remain in the United States while they apply for hardship waivers.

The law currently forces illegal immigrants who wish to apply for green cards to return to their home countries before they can apply for legal status. Once the individual leaves the United States, he or she is barred from returning for at least 3 to 10 years, leaving many families separated for long periods of time.

Under the new proposal, an undocumented immigrants would be able to apply for a provisional waiver while they are still in the United States. Obtaining the waiver will reduce the amount of time an undocumented immigrant must remain abroad in his or her home country while applying for a visa. No action is needed by Congress to enact the rule as "President Obama is making greater use of executive power to overcome congressional resistance to his policy goals," according to a report by the LA Times.

The WSJ interviewed Nancy Kuznetsov, vice president of American Families United, who said "[the proposal] is a wonderful humane change." The article noted that the proposal will likely garner praise from the Latino community, a key constituency in the upcoming 2012 election.

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

SJC Rules That State Cannot Exclude Legal Immigrants From Health Coverage

The Boston Globe reported that the Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) in Massachusetts has ruled in favor of legal immigrants who sued the Commonwealth because they were excluded from state health care coverage.

The SJC's opinion in the case of Finch v. Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority stated that the current law "violates [immigrants] rights to equal protection under the Massachusetts Constitution."

Commonwealth Care is the Massachusetts state program that provides health care coverage and assistance to low-income residents. The Connector Authority administers this program by allowing enrollees to pay a portion of the premium for health insurance while the Connector pays for the remainder. The Commonwealth Care program, enacted in 2006, covered eligible residents - including noncitizen, qualified aliens - to enroll for coverage.

In response to the state's fiscal problems, the state legislature amended the law in 2009 to exclude legal immigrants who have lived in the United States for less than five years - a move the Commonwealth argued was in line with federal law. However, legislative history reflected that the statute's actual purpose was exclusively fiscal concerns with no reference to national immigration policy.

The SJC concluded that "We recognize that our decision will impose a significant financial burden on the Commonwealth...If the plaintiffs' right to equal protection of the laws has been violated...then it is our duty to say so."

To read the case in its entirety, click here.

Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

Supreme Court Issues Opinion in Judulang v. Holder

The New York Times published an editorial on a recent U.S. Supreme Court case that addressed inconsistent policies applied in immigration law. 


In Judulang v. Holder, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) had ruled that the petitioner, Joel Judulang, could be deported because he had been convicted of voluntary manslaughter (an aggravated felony) when he was 14 years old. Judulang, a native of the Philippines, had been a lawful permanent resident in the United States since 1974 when he was 8 years old. The BIA ruled that Judulang could not seek discretionary relief from deportation based on the application of "comparable-grounds" policy where an individual would be denied relief from deportation but allowed for relief for individuals who wanted to enter the country. 


The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that this policy is inconsistent and unlawful. Justice Elena Kagan wrote "We must reverse an agency policy when we cannot discern a reason for it" and that such a policy made deportation a "sport of chance...like flipping a coin - heads an alien may apply for relief, tails he may not." 


Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

Pew Hispanic Center Poll: Latinos Disapprove Obama's Immigration Policies

A study by the Pew Hispanic Center revealed that most Latinos disapprove of President Obama's immigration and deportation policies. The annual average number of deportations under the Obama administration has reached a record-setting high, with 400,000 illegal immigrants deported since 2009. Additionally, illegal immigration has decreased, hitting a decade low, because of the economy and increased law enforcement efforts, according to an ABC News blog. 


However, most registered Latino voters are throwing their support behind the Democratic Party and President Obama in the upcoming 2012 election. The Pew study did not focus on the Obama administration's recent prosecutorial discretion policy where the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will direct its efforts on granting reprieves on a case-by-case basis to individuals who do not have criminal convictions. DHS has reviewed 15,000 cases so far, but with a total of 300,000 cases to review, administration officials emphasized that implementing this policy will take some time. 


White House spokesman Luis Miranda said to ABC News blog that "This Administration has made dramatic improvements by developing clear immigration enforcement priorities for the first time ever that include focusing on those with criminal records, a smarter approach from a law enforcement perspective that also better reflects our nation's values." 


Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters. 

New Immigration Hotline for Detainees Arrested by Local Police

The Los Angeles Times reported that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced a new hotline established for detainees who "believe they may be U.S. citizens or victims of a crime" if they are held in custody by local law enforcement. The Obama Administration launched the hotline in response to cases where local law enforcement were detaining U.S. citizens, believing they were illegal immigrants. 


The hotline is staffed 24 hours a day by ICE personnel, seven days a week, with interpreters fluent in several different languages. Once a phone call is made, a hotline staffer will collect information from the detainee that will be forwarded to the ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations field office. The detainee will be presented with a form available in different languages that will inform them of their rights, including a notification that ICE officials should take custody of the individual within 48 hours. The press release also stated "if ICE does not take them into custody within the 48 hours, they should contact the [law enforcement agency] or entity that is holding them to inquire about their release from state or local custody." 


The toll-free number is (855) 448-6903. 


Glickman Turley's experienced attorneys represent individuals on a wide range of immigration matters, as well as other legal issues. Please contact our attorneys if you wish to discuss representation on immigration matters, real estate purchase and sales, condominium associations, criminal defense, non-profit law, civil litigation, business litigation, business law, probate matters including wills, powers of attorney, health care proxy, same-sex parent adoptions, guardianships, animal law, or LGBT legal matters.