NEW YORK, September 6, 2023: Human Rights First will honor Morgan Lewis with its 2023 Marvin E. Frankel Award for the firm’s pro bono efforts to support Afghan asylum seekers. Named after Human Rights First co-founder and former chairman Judge Marvin E. Frankel, the award recognizes law firms for their pro bono work on behalf of refugees.
After the fall of the Afghan government in 2021, Morgan Lewis partnered with Human Rights First on pro bono initiatives to assist Afghans fleeing the country. The firm’s collaboration included a series of intake clinics to interview Afghan participants to determine which immigration remedies were available to them.
Morgan Lewis also participated in adjustment-of-status clinics to help Afghan clients complete the applications necessary for them to obtain lawful permanent resident status in the United States. Additionally, the firm held intake interviews for hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers and has taken on more than 30 full-scope asylum cases through Human Rights First, helping clients pursue asylum or other remedies to obtain legal status.
Morgan Lewis and other honorees will be recognized at an awards celebration on October 17 in New York.