About.

Established in 2018

Since the current administration's policy of separating children from their parents at the southern border was implemented, initiating a new and unnecessary humanitarian crisis, I was compelled to get involved in the field of immigration again.  After working as an immigration paralegal for 10 years, I took time pursue a Masters in Anthropology, and an interest in Chinese martial arts and medicine.  However, our current administration's policies towards refugees, asylum-seekers and immigrants is creating a crisis of conscience for the nation.  I have a unique professional skill that I felt necessary to exercise and make available to attorneys who work tirelessly to protect the world's most vulnerable citizens. 

My Goal

My goal is to combine my background, knowledge and skill as an immigration paralegal and an anthropologist to assist immigration attorneys make the strongest cases they can for clients seeking asylum.

About Me

Laura Chadwick

The fall semester of my senior year in college, I remember walking across my campus green on the way to my 8:00am Modern Logic class, when I bumped into a friend.  She asked me, "Have you heard about what happened this morning?  Some people flew a plane into a building in New York."  It was the morning of September 11th, 2001.  In the days, weeks and months following, our country began the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.  On graduation, our country was in a deep state of reorganization, the economy went into recession and I needed work.  So, with my BA in Anthropology and French, I started working at my father's immigration law firm.  This was just at moment the INS was dissolved and the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement were launched, a time of rapid change and shifting priorities in the immigration system.  My father had already been specializing in asylum work for 30 years when I joined his practice, so I learned from one of the most seasoned and knowledgeable immigration attorneys in Chicago.  I found immigration paralegal work to be compelling, engaging, and deeply fulfilling.  I was primarily responsible for all the country background research for our asylum cases. I continued working there for 10 years and went on to pursue a Master's Degree in Anthropology.  During my education, I traveled extensively to many nations that were both source and host to refugees, including Haiti, Cuba, El Salvador and Namibia.  I am now able to combine skills gained during my time as a paralegal with anthropological research skills gained in graduate school.  I have a passion for reading, research, and delving deeply into a topic to find helpful details and nuance. 

We're Here for You 24/7