Patrick Taurel

Patrick Taurel is an Associate with the Immigration Practice Group in Clark Hill’s Washington, D.C. office. Patrick’s practice focuses on federal court litigation and removal defense, as well as affirmative benefits before United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and U.S. Consulates abroad. In 2017, he was named by Washingtonian Magazine as one of “Washington’s Top Lawyers” in the field of immigration law. 

Prior to joining Clark Hill, Patrick was as an associate attorney with the boutique Washington, D.C. immigration firm of Benach Ragland (now Benach Collopy) where he fought zealously to help his clients achieve goals ranging from asylum, relief under the Violence Against Women Act, U visas, cancellation of removal, to approval of long-pending applications, and naturalization. For two years Patrick was a legal fellow with the American Immigration Council where he became an expert in Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). At the Council, Patrick authored several practice advisories on DACA and related topics. He participated on numerous webinars, panels and podcasts, and was often a go-to resource for journalists covering DACA and other immigration prosecutorial discretion programs. Following law school, Patrick spent two years as an associate attorney with the leading Idaho immigration law firm, Andrade Legal.

As a law student, Patrick interned with the ACLU’s Immigrant Rights Project, the Hong Kong Refugee Advice Centre, and the Immigrant Defense Project. He graduated cum laude from Brooklyn Law School in 2010 and he received his B.A. in Philosophy from Brown University in 2004.

Patrick was born in Brazil and speaks Portuguese and Spanish, and is proficient in French and Italian. In June 2018, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) recognized him with the Joseph Minsky Young Lawyer Award for his outstanding contributions made as a young lawyer in the field of immigration and nationality law. In 2017-18, Patrick served as a member of AILA’s National Immigration and Customs Enforcement Liaison Committee. He is currently serving on AILA’s Amicus Committee. Patrick is also a member of the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild and he is a frequent writer and speaker on immigration issues.

Selected Representative Matters

• In re A.S., Asylum Termination Proceedings (USCIS Arlington Asylum Office 2017) – Satisfied USCIS that termination of A.S.’s asylee status was unwarranted. 
• In re C.B., Creation of Record Proceedings (USCIS Washington Field Office 2017) – Persuaded USCIS to approve green card application of C.B., the U.S.-born son of a diplomat who had been absent from the United States for a period of six years when he was a child.
• In re M.M., N-400 Proceedings (USCIS Washington Field Office 2017) – Obtained approval of Form N-400, Application for Naturalization, for M.M., notwithstanding that she voted in a prior election.
• Matter of C-A- (Arlington, VA Imm. Ct. 2017) – asylum granted to Anglophone Cameroonian who played a leadership role in the Southern Cameroons National Council based on his well-founded fear of persecution on account of his political opinion and nationality.
• Usilo, et al. v. United States, et al., No. 17-7517 (S.D.N.Y. filed Oct. 2, 2017; dismissed Nov. 7, 2017) – APA complaint and Motion for Preliminary Injunction challenging baseless finding of fraud made by Customs and Border Protection (CBP). 15 days after initiation of the lawsuit, CBP withdrew its inadmissibility finding, clearing the way for our client to obtain his visa. 
• Matter of L-B- (BIA 2016) – reopened L.B.’s removal proceedings before the Board of Immigration Appeals on the basis of ineffective assistance by prior counsel. L.B.’s prior counsel was ineffective because he failed to present evidence to USCIS and the Immigration Court that L.B.’s most recent entry into the United States was a “wave-through” entry that rendered him eligible for adjustment of status. In reopened proceedings, L.B. will be able to apply for a green card before the Immigration Judge.
• Matter of A.A. (Arlington, VA Imm. Ct. 2018) – Asylum granted to Afghan journalist who worked with U.S. news organization and reported critically on the Taliban.
• Matter of Y.S.C. (Arlington, VA Imm. Ct. 2018) – Secured adjustment of status to that of lawful permanent resident for Korean conditional lawful permanent resident who inadvertently failed to file petition to remove conditions on residence.
• Wang v. Colucci et al., No. 15-1689 (D.D.C. filed Oct. 15, 2015) – Petition for writ of mandamus on behalf of Chinese EB-5 investor to compel USCIS to adjudicate long-pending Form I-526. Within six months of filing the petition, USCIS approved the I-526.

Selected Publications

• Co-Author, “Discovery in Removal Proceedings,” Practice Pointer, 2018 AILA Annual Conference
• Author, Sample Notice of Mendez-Rojas Class Membership included in “Court Decision Ensures Asylum Seekers Notice of the One-Year Filing Deadline and an Adequate Mechanism to Timely File Applications,” Frequently Asked Questions, American Immigration Council et al.
• Co-Author, Sample Mandamus Complaint included in “Mandamus Actions: Avoiding Dismissal and Proving the Case,” Practice Advisory, American Immigration Council
• Co-Author, “Humanitarian Options Under Executive Action,” Practice Pointer, 2016 AILA Annual Conference
• Author, “Screening Potential DACA Requestors for Other Forms of Relief,” Practice Advisory, American Immigration Council
• Co-Author, “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals,” Practice Advisory, American Immigration Council
• Co-Author, “Advance Parole for DACA Recipients,” Practice Advisory, American Immigration Council and Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.
• Co-Author, “The Long and Winding Road of Prosecutorial Discretion,” Practice Advisory for 2015 AILA Annual Conference
• Co-Author, “Prosecutorial Discretion Requests Under the Johnson Enforcement Priorities Memorandum,” Practice Advisory, American Immigration Council
• Author, “The DAPA Dilemma: ‘Should I Apply?,’” March 2015 issue of AILA Voice
• Author, “Five Things to Know About DAPA,” January 2015 issue of AILA Voice

Selected Speaking Engagements

• Panelist, "Recent Procedural Challenges and Opportunities: Pereira, Castro-Tum, L-A-B-R-, and S-O-G- & F-D-B-," 2018 National Immigration Project Conference: Fighting Back in Removal Proceedings and in the Federal Courts
• Discussion Leader, “Discovery in Removal Proceedings,” 2018 AILA Annual Conference
• Panelist, “Mandamus Relief for Clients Stuck in Administrative Processing,” AILA Podcast, Recorded April 3, 2018.
• Discussion Leader, “Humanitarian Options Under Executive Action,” 2016 AILA Annual Conference
• Panelist, “2015 Update on Prosecutorial Discretion,” AILA Audio Seminar, Released May 7, 2015.
• Guest, C-Span, Washington Journal, “President Obama’s Immigration Executive Action,” February 8, 2015.
• Panelist, “Late-Breaking Podcast on the 2014 Executive Actions,” AILA Podcast, Released November 26, 2014.
• Panelist, “Getting Ready for Administrative Relief: What We Know So Far,” Webinar for Committee for Immigration Reform Implementation, November 24, 2014.
• Guest, Wall Street Journal Video, “What’s Next After Obama’s Immigration Plan,” November 21, 2014.
• Panelist, “The Long and Winding Road of Prosecutorial Discretion,” AILA Annual Conference, National Harbor, MD, June 17-20, 2014.
• Panelist, “What You Need to Know About DACA Renewals and Other Developments,” AILA Podcast, Released June 12, 2014.
• Panelist, “Minors in Proceedings,” AILA New England Immigration Law Conference, Boston, MA, March 7, 2014.
• Panelist, “DACA Updates – Evolving and Advanced Issues,” AILA Audio Seminar, Released July 25, 2013.

Honors

• 2019 Corporate Intl Magazine Global Award: Business Immigration Law Firm of the Year in Washington D.C.

• 2018 American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Joseph Minsky Young Lawyer Award

• GlobalLawExperts: 2018 Business Immigration Law Firm of the Year in Washington D.C.

• 2018 Corporate Intl Magazine Global Award: ‘Business Immigration Law Firm of the Year in Washington D.C.’

• In 2017, Washingtonian Magazine named Patrick Taurel as one of “Washington’s Top Lawyers” in the field of immigration law.

• Clark Hill receives 2017 Tier 1 Ranking for Immigration Law in Washington, DC by US News and World Report.

• Clark Hill won Immigration -  Law Firm of the Year – USA by Finance Monthly Law Awards, 2017.

• Clark Hill won Legal Team of the Year - Corporate Immigration for 2017 by Lawyerissue.