The Legal Service Corporation’s Office of Legal Affairs issued an Advisory Opinion on April 14 entitled, Legal Assistance to Ineligible Alien Parents with U.S. Citizen Children.

The opinion discusses whether Part 1626 of the Corporation’s regulations permits LSC grantees to provide services to parents who are ineligible for services due to their immigration status, but have children who are U.S. citizens and are eligible for services, if the services provided would benefit the children.

The opinion finds that grantees may generally not provide services to the ineligible parents just because those services would benefit the eligible children. In addition, grantees may not provide services to eligible children for their parents' legal claims if the children do not have “legally cognizable claims” of their own.

However, grantees can provide services to eligible children, even if the services might benefit the ineligible parents, so long as the children have their own legal claims.

Download the full opinion [PDF] ( 25k)
Download other advisory opinions from LSC’s Office of Legal Affairs
 

From LSC Updates, April 16, 2010