VOLUNTEER ATTORNEYS

VAAP offers a range of pro bono opportunities for attorneys—from one-day legal clinics to full-scope representation and federal litigation. Besides training on application filing, we offer opportunities and guidance on a wide array of services including bond motion preparation, petitions for writs of habeas corpus, and more. Volunteers receive training from experienced specialists, malpractice coverage, and collaborative support through group case rounds. We welcome resourceful, justice-driven lawyers ready to help our nascent and resource-constrained organization to expand access to immigration legal services across Vermont. Whether you have one afternoon or a few hours a month, VAAP has a pro bono opportunity to match your legal skills and schedule. We are especially interested in partnering with law firms and bringing coordinated pro bono mentorship and services right to your office. Learn more about attorney volunteering here and review our standard VAAP-Pro Bono Memorandum of Understanding here.

VAAP PRO BONO COORDINATOR, DOWNS RACHLIN MARTIN PLLC

Taylor (she/her) is an Associate at Downs Rachlin Martin PLLC and coordinates the VAAP-DRM pro bono partnership. She is a registered patent attorney with a background in biology and experience in both patent litigation and patent prosecution. After participating in several attorney-for-a-day legal help clinics with VAAP support, she was proud to undertake leadership on VAAP’s ongoing pro bono collaboration with DRM. With our clients, practices, privacy, and the very rule of law under threat, we are supremely grateful to our pro bono partners at DRM - ranging from direct service providers to transactional advisors to lobbysts and beyond - for standing strong with VAAP and our client communities. Learn more.

VOLUNTEER ATTORNEY

Glennis (she/her) is a full-time volunteer attorney working with VAAP pursuing Pro Bono Emeritus status. Since her retirement from a storied career in children’s rights, Glennis has established herself as the go-to Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) attorney in the Upper Valley. She also assists asylum seekers with filing their applications and tables at VAAP outreach events. In her own words, "I recently retired and can’t think of a better way to use my skills and experience as an attorney than by volunteering with the intelligent, organized and energetic staff at VAAP, assisting immigrants gain legal status in the US. I heartily recommend working under the auspices of VAAP as a pro bono attorney.”

VOLUNTEER ATTORNEY

Seth (he/him) is a full-time volunteer attorney working with VAAP on Pro Bono Emeritus status. Since his retirement from a storied career at the Vermont Prisoner’s Rights Office, Seth has developed a reputation as Vermont’s go-to French-speaking pro bono asylum attorney, now representing asylum seeking families from Tunisia, Rwanda, Benin, and Congo (Brazzaville), as well as Afghanistan, Russia, Venezuela, and Pakistan. At a time when the federal asylum system has slowed to a frustrating halt, Seth has managed to bring creative asylum legal claims and litigate them to favorable resolutions. In 2024, the Vermont Bar Association honored Seth with the Pro Bono Service Award.

VOLUNTEER ATTORNEY

Andy (he/him) is a full-time volunteer attorney working with VAAP. He earned his J.D. from Vermont Law School in 2018 and an LL.M. in international law from Leiden University in the Netherlands in 2022. Andy's work primarily focuses on defense against removal and working to assist or free people held in ICE detention. More recently, Andy has intervened in multiple instances of unlawful detention through Habeas Corpus litigation and remains eager to continue pursuing this form of relief for his clients. He was born and raised in Vermont and is grateful for the opportunity to meaningfully impact the lives of noncitizen Vermont residents facing removal from their chosen community at the hands of ICE.