Our Community CommitmentRepresent. Educate. Train. Participate.
To relentlessly defend the American Dream, it takes more than just representing the individual client alone. We volunteer our time to educate the community in the most effective ways possible.
We train other legal professionals across the country so that they can better defend their non-U.S. citizen clients.
We participate in a number of organizations, boards and critical discussions that change laws and policy. Please contact us for community event opportunities.
Board Appointments & Service
Jessica Stern
Managing Attorney
Attorney Jessica Stern has served in a number of boards and service organizations. She continues to give back during her spare time, including:
Former Vice-Chair– City of Atlanta Board of Ethics
Member, AILA – ICE Liaison Committee; Unlawful Practice of Law Committee
Member, Northern District of Georgia – Criminal Justice Act Panel
Mayor’s Advisory Committee on Immigrant Detention, City of Atlanta (2018)
Humble Brag to celebrate our Founder, Jessica Stern
The American Immigration Lawyers Association awarded Jessica with the Pro Bono Champion Award for her tireless efforts over the years to educate, train, and counsel public defenders across the country on the responsibilities of criminal defense lawyers to properly advise non-U.S citizen clients of the risk of deportation. This “Padilla work” became necessary after the U.S. Supreme Court issued its 2010 decision in Padilla v. Kentucky, changing the requirements of criminal defense lawyers. Still, 11 years later, many lawyers struggle to provide the proper resources and knowledge to their non-citizen clients. Jessica has been at the forefront of this issue since the beginning, and she is passionate about raising awareness and the bar for quality representation for non-U.S. Citizens.
Join us in congratulating Jessica and thanking her for the true commitment to justice for ALL.
Jessica led a prestigious group of women lawyers to receive the 2013 Atlanta Bar Association’s Celebrating Service Award. She is a regular volunteer with Foreverfamily, Inc., a non-profit organization that provides unending support to children with an incarcerated parent. The young people in the program are more likely than their peers to get stuck in the criminal justice system. Therefore, involvement with Foreverfamily, Inc. is critical to ensure that the kids understand there are options and people to support them towards a better future. She was a member of the Young Professionals Board with a goal of raising funds for regular programming and summer camp. Please check out the website foreverfam.org to find out ways to join us in supporting Foreverfamily, Inc.(Fulton County Daily Report News Article)
Pro Bono Support
STERN Law created the STERN Law Access-to-Counsel Fund in 2018. The funds raised will provide the opportunity for non-U.S. citizens to access immigration defense representation in circumstances where they otherwise could not afford it. The funds are distributed to non-profit programs that directly provide access to counsel or to directly hire private counsel that is otherwise out of financial reach.
The Work of a Public Defender
Public defenders and non-profit defense activists are doing the most important work in our country. Jessica Stern is a graduate and loyal supporter of the Gideon’s Promise program. Gideon’s Promise is committed to reforming public defender systems, one lawyer at a time, by teaching public defenders how to deliver the highest quality, client-centered advocacy possible to their indigent clients. With the support of a growing alliance of organizations, individuals, and law schools across the nation, Gideon’s Promise is partnering with public defender offices to build a community of committed and passionate advocates to drive indigent defense reform across the South. Watch the award-winning HBO documentary, Gideon’s Army, and learn more about how you can help support this cause.
Cancellation of Removal/Deportation & Lawful Permanent Residence Granted
D.O. is a Colombian citizen. D.O.’s wife depends on him greatly. She was a victim of significant domestic violence in her past marriage, and suffers from anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. D.O. has treated her children as his own family, and they built a business together in Georgia. This business sold...
Criminal Conviction Eliminated & Admissible for Green Card
C.M. has been in the U.S. since 12 years old from Jamaica. He has spent decades pursuing a passion for photography and uses it as a tool to strengthen his community. Throughout his youth, he was convicted of two separate misdemeanor marijuana possession convictions. This made him deportable without any chance to...
Felony Offense Dismissed & Avoided Deportation
Our client’s son, H.S., faced absolute deportation until she found STERN Law. We fought to successfully dismiss the felony drug charges, secured his release from jail and worked tirelessly to convince the Department of Homeland Security to grant him Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Thanks to our efforts, H.S. avoided ICE...
Secured U.S. Citizenship & Passport
D.E. was born in the United States to a mother from Ghana. He had traveled back and forth as a child, but spent all of his adult life in the states. An exciting job opportunity required him to travel internationally, and so he applied for a U.S. passport as any other citizen....
Approved for U.S. Citizenship
Meet our client, Ms. Sook Lee, now Angela Lee. She is Korean-American and now has U.S. Citizenship. Her biological father (whom she never knew) was a U.S. Army soldier. She has loved America ever since and was determined to become a naturalized U.S. citizen. Here she is, after she passed the civics...
