Michael Galas Receives Rising Star Recognition from the National Immigrant Justice Center

Michael Galas from the Los Angeles office was named a Rising Star by the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) and recognized at NIJC’s 20th Annual Human Rights Awards Luncheon for his work on a lawsuit filed by Gibson Dunn, NIJC, and the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) on behalf of “Ms. Q.” and her four-year-old son, “J.”  Ms. Q. and J.  had been detained and separated from each other soon after entering the United States to seek asylum, ultimately spending more than eight months apart with very little communication and no physical contact.  The lawsuit alleged that the government’s separation of Ms. Q. from J. violated their substantive due process rights and the Administrative Procedure Act.  Michael argued the motion on behalf of Ms. Q. and J., and after hearing argument, Judge Friedman granted the preliminary injunction motion from the bench and ordered the government to reunite the family within 72 hours.  Ms. Q. and J. have been living together in Chicago ever since as they continue to pursue longer-term immigration relief.