Lawrence Persick of Weber Gallagher Simpson Stapleton Fires & Newby. Courtesy photo

State Supreme Court Clarifies Special Immigrant Juvenile Practice in Pa.

Looking specifically at the Velasquez case, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court granted discretionary review to clarify the role of Pennsylvania courts in deciding whether our courts could make the necessary findings to support SIJ status and, if so, what branch of our court system has the ability to make those determinations.

September 26, 2024 at 09:41 AM

9 minute read

Family Law

By Lawrence J. "Skip" Persick

Previously in this space I wrote an article on special immigrant juvenile (SIJ) status, "Special Immigrant Juvenile Status: Does it Exist in Pennsylvania?," The Legal Intelligencer, Nov. 28, 2023. In that article I addressed four Pennsylvania Superior Court cases, two originating in Delaware County, and two originating in Chester County, on the state of SIJ status in Pennsylvania at that time. I ended with a reference to Superior Court Judge Megan Sullivan's concurring opinions in the two Chester County cases. In those opinions Sullivan urged either the Pennsylvania legislature or our state Supreme Court to address the issues confusing practitioners and the trial courts around the commonwealth in SIJ cases.

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