IMMIGRANT DEFENDERS LAW CENTER (9)

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EXHIBIT A Program Operation Plan 1) Describe, generally, your organization's qualifications as outlined in the Evaluation Criteria above. In particular, please detail your organization's experience representing immigrants in removal proceedings for the last three years. List in the table below the number of Section 240 detained and non - detained removal cases far which your organization undertook representation in each of, 2018, and 2019 and 2020 years and the court locations where those cases were pending at the inception of representation. Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef) is a next -generation social justice law firm that defends our immigrant communities against injustices in the legal system. We envision a future where no immigrant will be forced to face immigration court alone. Our programs are a first step toward the long-term goal of providing universal representation to all immigrants facing deportation. Our organization was founded in 2015 by a group of experienced public interest immigration lawyers and our rapid growth is a testament to the need for our services in the communities we serve. Since our humble beginnings in our founders' living rooms, our team has grown from a handful of attorneys to more than 120 dedicated staff members. We have expanded our office locations to respond to the needs of our clients and currently have offices in Los Angeles, Adelanto, Riverside, Santa Ana, and San Diego. ImmDef is the largest non- profit, pro Bono provider of deportation defense in California. With a 2020 annual budget of approximately $7 million, our team provides full-scale deportation defense and legal education classes to approximately 2,600 adults and children in Southern California annually. Our programs include the following: a Children's Representation Project for unaccompanied children, refugees, and foster youth; a Detained Youth Empowerment Project that provides classes, legal screenings, and representation to children detained by the government in youth shelters; Family Unity Project reuniting and providing comprehensive legal services to families who were separated as a result of the 2018 Zero Tolerance Policy or other ICE enforcement actions; Post -Conviction Relief Program where we challenge unlawful criminal convictions for immigrants facing deportation; a Litigation & Advocacy Team launched in 2019 to expand our appellate advocacy and participation in strategic litigation to dismantle the system that seeks to deport our clients; targeted Local Justice Fund Programs in the Long Beach, Santa Ana, Los Angeles, and Inland Empire areas that protect our communities and families against aggressive ICE enforcement; our National Qualified Representatives Project that serves immigrants with mental health disabilities to ensure due process and fairness in their immigration court proceedings; and finally our Cross -Border Initiative where we advocate daily for the human rights of asylum -seekers who have been forced back into Mexico as part of the cruel Migrant Protection Protocols program. The numbers in the following table represent new cases accepted for each of the past three calendar years. In 2019 we represented 234 Detained cases, and 237 Non -Detained cases. 2018 iCourt Detained ;Non -Detained 'Los Angeles Court 1166 1308 I 'Adelanto i76 10 I 'Otay Mesa i1 i0 I 1 i 1