Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic

The Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program (HIRC), in partnership with Greater Boston Legal Services (GBLS), has worked with hundreds of immigrants and refugees since its founding in 1984.  HIRC combines representation of individual applicants for asylum and related relief with the development of theories and policy relating to asylum law.  HIRC students take the lead in representing clients from all over the world who are seeking protection from being returned to human rights abuses in their country of origin, protection from exile after years of living in the United States, or reunification with their families.  

Harvard’s Immigration and Refugee Clinic Program is a leader in its field.  HIRC is active in appellate and policy advocacy on local, national, and international levels.  The U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security have engaged HIRC in the training of immigration judges and asylum matters with regard to issues relating to asylum law.  HIRC published the first major treatise on U.S. asylum law, The Law of Asylum in the United States.  In addition, HIRC provides advice, support, and supplemental services to advocates around the U.S.

HIRC also works with student groups, such as the Harvard Immigration Project, to sponsor speakers on a range of topics, including national immigration legislation, treatment of refugees around the world, and detention and deportation.