Chicago Lawyer Highlights Colby Kingsbury's Pro Bono Immigration Work

A few years after moving to the U.S. in 1999, following a civil war in his native Yemen, Rashed BinRashed was detained for possession and use of a fake Somali passport, Chicago Lawyer reported. Colby Anne Kingsbury, a business litigator at Faegre Baker Daniels, met BinRashed in 2005 and agreed to represent him pro bono in a complex immigration case.

"This was an opportunity to, first of all, do the right thing, and second of all, get some other good experience," she said. "I took the case on and immediately loved my client. He's a diplomat's son, so he had a great education and interesting tales."

After six years in litigation, Kingsbury has secured BinRashed's release and achieved him a withholding of removal. The case went to the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, back to the Immigration Court and then back up to the Board of Immigration Appeals. Until his final hearing in May, BinRashed still cannot receive identification, attend school or get a job.

"It's been an incredible experience, and sadly, it's not quite over," Kingsbury told Chicago Lawyer. "Even with this administration where you'd think immigrants have a better chance, that hasn't happened at all. There is this fear that at any time, they can say things have improved in Yemen and now you have to go home."