FLORIDA (Immigration Law) ? Court Weighs Immigrant's Right to ...

Recently, the Florida Supreme Court accepted a request from the Florida Board of State Bar Examiners to determine whether it can grant an applicant who is not in the country legally admission to practice law. The case, which has been flagged as ?high profile? by the court, will determine the fate of aspiring lawyer Jose Godinez-Samperio.

The twenty-five-year-old Tampa resident came to the U.S. with his parents when he was nine years old. The family?s tourist visa expired, but they never left, and Godinez-Samperio went on to become an Eagle Scout and the valedictorian of his high school. After completing college, he attended Florida State University College of Law, and upon receipt of his law degree and passage of the Florida bar exam, applied for admission to the bar.

That admission now hangs in the difference between rules and policies. Godinez-Samperio argues that the Florida Supreme Court is the only body capable of adopting new rules for admission to the Florida bar, and their current rules do not require applicants to verify their legal immigration status. The Board of Bar Examiners, who since 2008 have required exam-takers to submit proof of immigration status, are, according to Godinez-Samperio, attempting to enforce a contrary policy, although he already complied with the rule.
Additionally, Godinez-Samperio?s supporters argue that as a matter of policy, denying his admission to the bar would be an incredible waste of talent for the profession, and an unjust punishment for someone who had no say in his family?s decision to overstay their tourist visa. Moreover, Godinez-Samperio has been entirely forthcoming about his immigration status at every opportunity, disclosing it on college and law school applications and on his application to the bar.

But opponents to his admission insist that he is nonetheless unfit to practice law. They argue that in showing continued contempt for American immigration laws, Godinez-Samperio has undermined his credibility as a faithful agent of the law and the courts. To a similar end, Tom Fitton, president of the conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch argued, ?He can?t practice as a lawyer?.He is not legally able to work in the United States. ?It seems to me that it would be an absurdity to give him a Bar card at this point.?
Godinez-Samperio is the first undocumented immigrant to apply for admission to the Florida Bar since the 2008 policy change. The decision in his case is thus an important one for the future of the profession in the state, and may likewise have consequences for similar matters pending in New York and California.

Further Reading:
ABC News
Sun Sentinel

?Meredith McCoy

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