The vendor is required to provide immigration legal representation to the children under department jurisdiction, who experience abuse or neglect at the hands of their parents or primary caregivers.
1. Legal services provided by contractor
• Contractor must coordinate with department, law, the dependency court, local agencies, and community-based organizations to facilitate contractor’s access to eligible department clients in need of immigration legal assistance pursuant to this contract.
• Contractor must conduct a preliminary assessment, prior to the signing of an agreement for legal representation for any department client referred for immigration legal assistance; to determine if the contractor can accept the client for any immigration status proceedings that may be available to the client.
• Contractor must provide legal services that include culturally and linguistically appropriate services provided by attorneys, paralegals, interpreters, and other support staff.
• Contractor must provide legal services to department youth with intersecting identities and compounded marginalization and affirm their right to non-discriminatory, identity affirming services.
• Contractor staff having direct contact with clients including attorneys and paralegals must participate in implicit bias, cultural humility, racial equity, and trauma-informed care training and provide a record of completion.
• Contractor must provide pro bono legal assistance to department youth, when necessary.
• Contractor must provide competent legal services to department clients at all stages of the immigration legal assistance process that include, and are not limited to:
o Obtaining information and facts relevant to the represented department client in need of immigration relief to properly assess and determine the appropriate immigration status or statuses for which the department client may be eligible to apply;
o Prepare and attend interviews, depositions, mediations, arbitrations, settlement conferences and/or, administrative or judicial hearings as necessary and appropriate; and
o Prepare and file appropriate applications, documents, motions, and briefs.
2. Length of legal services provided by contractor
• Contractor must, except as specified in this section, provide all necessary and appropriate immigration legal assistance to qualifying department clients in need of immigration relief and may continue representation even if such representation exceeds the duration of this contract.
• In the event that the contractor agrees to provide legal assistance to a department client in need of immigration relief that was previously represented and provided legal services by another organization, the contractor must provide legal services.
- Contract Period/Term: 1 year
- Mandatory Virtual Proposers’ Conference Date: June 17, 2025
- Questions/Inquires Deadline: June 12, 2025